The Clans
by Shadowclanwarrior
Summary: After a huge battle on Kamino, Anakin, Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, Asajj, Dooku, and Grievous find themselves in the world of Warrior cats! Who brought them here, what is their purpose? Those are the main questions they ask themselves as they live the lives of clan cats. But can they put away their grudges of the past to save the clans from destruction?
1. The Storm of Kamino

It was a dark and stormy night on the planet Kamino. The planet's ocean was crashing onto the Republic's base for reproducing there clones for the dreadful and bloody war they were in. Lightning struck in every direction around the base, destroying everything it touched. But storms like this where common to the clone troopers on Kamino, what was really terrifying was the huge battle that was taking place.

The enemy of the Republic, the Separatists, brought their huge droid army to take over the base. Without this base, the Republic would be destroyed without it's clones to protect it. But fortunately, two of the greatest warriors in the Republic were nearby to help. Their names were, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker.

They were warriors called Jedi, who were part of the organization called The Jedi Order. Both were very skilled with their weapons, the lightsaber, and had a strong connection with the Force, a spiritual energy that guides all of the Jedi to bring peace to the universe.

Anakin and Obi-Wan arrived just in time before the clones got overwhelmed by battle droids. Obi-Wan and Anakin drove them back as fast as the speed of light. And to make things better, Anakin's Jedi padawan, Ahsoka Tano, came to help too. She heard the distress signal from the base in a nearby ship and came as quickly as she could. With three Jedi on the clone's side, they almost defeated the Separatists.

But then, the Separatists' most deadly assassin, Asajj Ventress, and their most powerful and deadly general, General Grievous, came from one of the ships. Both of them took out there lightsabers and charged the Jedi. Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka charged at them as well. Their lightsabers collided in what looked like a blue, green, and red light show. Anakin took on Asajj while Obi-Wan and Ahsoka took on Grievous. The battle was so intense that all the clones and droids stopped what they were doing and just watch it. It was _that_ intense, that even the Separatist's leader, Count Dooku came to watch.

As the battle continued, so did the storm. Lighting was struck every five seconds as it got closer and closer to the base. Even tornadoes where forming as the wind got faster and stronger. But the storm seemed to be traveling to the base, as if it was hunting for something. It was so bad that both the clones and the droids retreated to shelter.

But Anakin, Ahsoka, Obi-Wan, Asajj, and Grievous continued to fight not even aware of the lighting and tornado that were right beside them. Even Dooku stayed to watch this epic battle as if he was entertained.

Then in a quick flash, lighting struck right in the middle of the battle. Ahsoka, Obi-Wan, and Anakin went flying and fell into the ocean. While Grievous and Asajj flew right into Dooku and fell to the floor. Lighting kept striking the base and flames spread everywhere. Finally the storm ended and everything was calm again. The clones and droids came out and looked for their leaders. But when the droids came to the spot Dooku, Grievous, and Asajj fell, they were gone. And all the clones found where Ahsoka, Anakin, and Obi-Wan's lightsabers.

They just disappeared.


	2. Where Am I?

"_Anakin, Anakin wake up!"_ a voice called in the distance.

"Ugh…Padme?" Anakin Skywalker asked sleepily.

"Anakin, please wake up please," Padme begged as her voice went further and further away.

"_Padme!_"

He woke up with a start. He looked around him, trying to find Padme. But she was nowhere in sight. Instead, Anakin saw that he was near a thick forest, where the trees where in beautiful shades of green. 

_Where am I? _Anakin asked himself.

He looked around to see he wasn't alone. He saw two strange, sleeping animals. One had long orange fur mainly around his muzzle like a beard. It had long ears and tail along with sharp claws. The second one was similar but was smaller, had darker orange and white fur, and not as sharp of claws.

Anakin looked around for Obi-Wan and Ahsoka, but there were no signs of them. He then glanced behind him to see a large, beautiful blue lake. Anakin looked at his reflection in the water. He expected to see himself as a twenty year old human, with short dirty blond hair, and have a scar over his left eye.

But instead, he saw an animal with dirty blond colored fur, blue eyes, and a scar over its left eye. Anakin flinched back in fear. What was that_ thing_? Anakin shook his head wildly trying wake himself up.

_Maybe I'm dreaming_, he thought.

He looked at his reflection again. It was the same creature.

"No…"

He looked at the other animals. No, it couldn't be…

"Obi-Wan?" Anakin asked softly to the orange animal.

"What Anakin? Can't you see I'm trying to sleep?" the animal muttered sleepily sounding like Obi-Wan.

"_Obi-Wan wake up!_" Anakin said trying to wake his former master.

"Anakin, what is-" Obi-Wan stopped at what he was saying and stared at Anakin.

He had the same puzzled look Anakin had.

"I know master, just look at your reflection in the lake!" Anakin ordered.

Obi-Wan got up and walked clumsily on all fours to the lake. Anakin got up and fallowed him. It felt weird walking on four paws instead of two feet. Obi-Wan stared at his reflection, too shocked for words.

Anakin sat next to his master and asked, "Master, what is going on?"

Obi-Wan stayed silenced for a moment. Then he answered, "I…I don't know Anakin..."

"What do you think could have happened, how did we get here, and _what_ are we?" Anakin asked almost like he was ready to panic.

"I _don't_ know what happened, where are we, or what we've been turned into, all I know is something must have happened when we were at Kamino," Obi-Wan said trying to stay calm.

Anakin tried to recall what exactly had happened at that night. He remembered that he was on Kamino, fighting Asajj Ventress while Obi-Wan and Ahsoka fought General Grievous. It was raining really hard. There was a lightning strike while they were fighting. He, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka fell into the ocean. After that, Anakin couldn't remember what happened after that.

"Wake up Ahsoka Anakin, we need to let her know what has happened," Obi-Wan said pulling Anakin out of his thoughts.

Anakin nodded and walked over to his sleeping padawan. "Ahsoka, Snips, time to wake up," he said in a quiet and gentle voice.

"What?" Ahsoka asked as she looked up at him.

"Anakin, what's going on? Is this some kind of joke?" Ahsoka questioned irritated.

Anakin then told her what happened when he woke up and how he found himself as this strange, animal. When he finished explaining, Ahsoka stared at him speechless. She ran to the lake next to Obi-Wan and looked at her reflection to see if it was true. Ahsoka stared at her master, terror in her blue eyes.

"What…how is this even _possible_?" she asked panicking.

"I don't know Ahsoka just calm down," Anakin answered her as he walked over there to join her and Obi-Wan.

"How did this even happen?" Ahsoka questioned not really talking to anyone.

Anakin just stared at her, not knowing how to explain this madness.

"I think I know how we got here…" Obi-Wan said after thinking about the instant really hard.

Anakin and Ahsoka looked at Obi-Wan.

"I think it has something to do with the storm," Obi-Wan explained.

"So, where still somewhere on Kamino, right? Like an island?" Ahsoka asked hopefully.

"We can't be on Kamino," Anakin answered, "There is _no_ way this place could be on Kamino and we didn't know about it."

"Then, where are we?"

"In a different dimension."

Ahsoka stared at Obi-Wan like he was crazy while Anakin thought about it.

"…That makes sense… Somehow we got teleported to this dimension and transformed into this planet's dominated species," Anakin said.

"Exactly."

"Hey guys have you've seen my lightsaber?" Ahsoka asked looking around for her weapon.

"No," both Obi-Wan and Anakin answered at the same time.

Now that Anakin thought about it, where was _his_ lightsaber? He looked around the area where he was sleeping. There was no trace of it.

"Did they get lost when we fell into the ocean?" Anakin asked his former master.

"Probably, I wouldn't surprise me," Obi-Wan replied.

"Great, just great! How am I going to explain this to the Council?" Ahsoka said angrily, "By the way, why are we even in this dimension?"

"I don't know, but for some strange reason, the Force has guided us here to do something," Obi-Wan said half to himself.

"It better be for a good reason for me to lose my lightsaber!" Ahsoka replied grumpily.

She started swishing her tail back and forth.

"Why are you swishing your tail like that?" Obi-Wan asked confused.

"_I don't know! I just am!_" Ahsoka shouted annoyed.

Obi-Wan said nothing after that. He just looked out on to the lake in deep thought.

Anakin sighed and walked closer to the forest. He wondered what lurked in those trees and what sort of creatures lived in it. Was the same species that he turned into lived there? He also wondered what was happening on Kamino right now. How where the clones doing against the droids and…

"Hey Obi-Wan," Anakin asked suddenly, "Did the lightning bolt hit Grievous and Asajj too?"

"Oh God, you don't think they're here too?" Ahsoka said worried.

"There here I can sense it," Obi-Wan said trying to use the force to since for their presents.

Anakin closed his eyes trying to contact the Force. He felt life forms all around him, in the forest and in the lake. He could sense life forms like him, but he could also feel a disturbance something evil in the area, but somewhere far away.

"I can feel it too," Anakin said. Ahsoka looked around her.

"Well where are they then?" she asked her claws unsheathed.

"Somewhere around this lake, we probably got separated when we where teleported here," Anakin answered.

"Do we need to warn the people who live here about them?" Ahsoka asked concern.

"Yes, and not only that but we need to learn more about this place," Obi-Wan said.

"Alright, let's go!" Ahsoka said excitement in her voice.

So the three Jedi walked into the forest. But one thought came to Anakin's mind. Will he ever get back home again and will he ever see his love, Padme again?


	3. Captured

Asajj woke up from the strangest dream. She dreamed that she was on Kamino, fighting Anakin Skywalker and that she got hit by a lightning bolt and saw what she thought looked like a four legged animal with long ears and tail. It stared at her with piercing amber eyes, as if it was waiting for her to come for some 'great' purpose. What the hell did she drink to come up with something like that?

Asajj got up in a dark forest near some kind of body of water instead of a room on a Separatists ship which she thought she was on. Asajj looked around the area. 

_How did I get here? _

Asajj looked over to where the body of water was to get a drink. It was a giant lake, glowing beautifully in the sunlight. Asajj looked into water. She saw the same animal that was in her dream, but it didn't have any fur on it and it also had cold light blue eyes that resembled Asajj's.

She looked around to see if anyone was around her. There wasn't but two sleeping animals. It was the same animal in the lake except there were bigger and have fur. One was gray with long fur around it's muzzle, the other was silver with patches of brown fur around the eyes and had long, sharp claws.

Asajj looked at the reflection again and then at her hands. But those weren't hands she was looking at but _paws_!

"_OH MY GOD!_" Asajj screamed at the top of her lungs.

It was so loud it woke the two sleeping animals.

"Asajj, why are you screaming?" the gray one asked sleepily and annoyed.

Asajj gasped for air. She couldn't believe what she just saw. Is this some dream or trick?

"Asajj! Where are you? You're not fooling anyone with that creature illusion," the gray cat cried.

Asajj looked at the two cats again. Now that she was awake, the two animals did look a lot like Dooku and Grievous.

Asajj glared at the gray animal. "Dooku, what did you do?"

"What the-" Dooku muttered surprised.

"What did you do, Dooku?" Asajj repeated louder this time.

Dooku ran clumsily to the lake ignoring Asajj's question. Grievous just got up and fallowed his eyes showing no expression.

"Well, Dooku?" Asajj questioned.

Dooku stepped back from the lake in shock. He looked at Asajj and then with at Grievous with confusion and panic. He finally pulled himself together and said, "Well, this is interesting…"

"For the last time, _what the hell did you do to us?_"

"I have no idea and what makes you think _I_ have anything to do with it?" Dooku asked suspiciously his neck fur rising in anger.

"Oh, now you think I did something?"

"Well why do you think I did anything ether?"

"If you didn't do this, then how did we get here?"

"_I don't know, Asajj! I've told you that already!_"

"_Well then, do something about it!_"

"_Like what?_"

"_I DON'T KNOW, JUST SOMETHNG!_"

Asajj flicked her tail back and forth furiously. This was going nowhere! She knew Dooku _had_ to have done something. He always played mind tricks on her in her training to be a Sith.

"If you two don't mind me interrupting your _lovely_ conversation," Grievous said amused, "I think I know how we got here."

Asajj glared at Grievous. "Alright if you're so smart, how did we get here then?" she asked sarcastically.

"Well," Grievous said coldly, "Remember that lightning bolt that hit us when we were in the middle of that battle? It must somehow created an ultra dimension portal and it transported us here along with those Jedi scum."

"That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!" Asajj cried irritated, "Honestly, how does a lightning bolt create an ultra dimension portal anyway Grievous?"

"It is possible, Asajj, if you go fast enough, you could open a black hole, which could lead to an ultra dimension," Dooku said.

"So, you two are saying that the lightning bolt was going so fast that it formed a black hole, which made a portal to an ultra dimension and we got transformed in the possess? Are you two out of your minds?"

Asajj was about to get up and ditch those two lunatics, when suddenly an animal tackled her. Asajj unleashed her claws and began to attack her opponent viciously. She tried to put her claws into the animal's throat but it dogged and tackled Asajj again and pined her to the ground. Asajj grunted in pain. If only she had her lightsaber which was nowhere to be found, she could have killed it in a mere second.

She looked to see Dooku and Grievous weren't having much luck ether. Dooku was trapped between four of the mysterious animals, while Grievous was pinned down two others. Asajj looked up to see the leader of the pack. It had ginger fur with green eyes and sharp claws.

"Well well, what do we have here?" it said in what sounded like an annoyed, yet amused tone.

Buy the way on how deep it's voice was, Asajj guessed it was a male. The ginger animal walked over to Dooku.

"Who are you and what are you doing on ShadowClan territory?" the animal threatened.

To Asajj's surprise her master looked calm as if he was doing nothing wrong. He walked up to the ginger animal.

"I'm sorry that we intruded on your territory," Dooku said calmly, "We didn't know we where trespassing."

"'Didn't know?' How in StarClan's name did you not know? How could you three not have smelled are sent marks?"

"Well, like I said I'm sorry, we can leave right now if you like."

"Oh no you don't, you're and your friends aren't going _anywhere_! Not after I talk to Blackstar! And if he's in a merciful mood he _might_ let you go," the ginger animal said neck fur rising and tail twitching furiously.

"Rowanclaw, are you sure that's a good idea to take them into are camp?" another animal asked this time a female.

"Yes Tawnypelt, we need to let Blackstar deal with them," the one called Rowanclaw said firmly but gently.

Tawnypelt nodded and called to the others, "You heard Rowanclaw, let's move out!"

The group started to lead Asajj, Dooku, and Grievous to where ever their so called 'camp' was.

"You do know what you're doing right?" Asajj asked.

"Of course Asajj, don't I always?" Dooku said confident.

Asajj sighed, why the hell did this have to happen?


	4. ThunderClan

Ahsoka looked around the forest as she, Anakin, and Obi-Wan wondered the forest for intelligent life to learn where they were and to warn them of Grievous and Asajj. As they walked, Ahsoka was amazed on how peaceful the forest seemed to be. She was so use to being on the battlefield that she almost forgot what it was like to be in a place without violence. Also, she was trying to get use to that fact that she wasn't a Togruta anymore, but some mysterious animal.

She looked at her paws as she unsheathed her long, sharp claws. Ahsoka felt some kind of disturbance as she looked at her claws. As if this animal's claws where only meant for one thing...

Bloodshed.

Where they a violent species or something?

"Master," Ahsoka suddenly asked Anakin, "do you or Obi-Wan have any idea of what kind of behavior these animals have?"

Anakin turned to Ahsoka. "I don't know. Me and Obi-Wan had never seen creatures like these before."

Ahsoka sighed. That didn't make her feel any better.

After walking for awhile, Obi-Wan suddenly stopped in his tracks.

"What is it?" Anakin asked concerned.

"I feel some sort of presents here," Obi-Wan answered anxiously as he looked around the area in all directions.

Ahsoka looked around too.

"I don't sense anything," she reported.

"Obi-Wan's right Snips," Anakin said to her, "There's someone here. I can sense it."

Anakin's neck fur began raise as he started to pace around the area. Ahsoka, still clueless, started to look around. She looked at a nearby bush. No one there. She looked at another bush. No one there. She looked around a tree. No one…wait!

Ahsoka looked up the tree to see a pair of dark blue eyes gazing at her. She stared at the mysterious eyes.

"Anakin! Obi-Wan!" Ahsoka called quietly.

"What Ahsoka? Did you find something?" Anakin asked her.

Ahsoka quickly pointed her tail at the direction of the eyes. Anakin looked up; soon Obi-Wan did as well.

"Should we try to communicate with it?" Ahsoka heard Anakin ask Obi-Wan.

"Worth a try," Obi-Wan said. He walked up towards Ahsoka. "Stay with Anakin, I'll deal with this."

She nodded and back up towards Anakin.

"It's alright," Obi-Wan called out to the eyes, "We mean no harm, could you please come down so we may talk?"

The eyes stared at him for a moment. Then a figure slowly came down the tree with its eyes fixed on Obi-Wan never blinking. Obi-Wan backed up as the figure climbed closer to the ground. When the figure finally came down, it walked towards Obi-Wan and said aggressively, "Alright, what do you think you're doing here, rouge!"

The creature was the same animal as they where, but it was not much bigger then Ahsoka. Ahsoka guessed it was a female by how soft its voice was. It also had silver and white fur with leaves tangled in it. 

_It must have been in that tree along time_, she thought.

The animal gave Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Ahsoka cold glares. "Well, explain yourselves!" the animal exclaimed.

"No need to get upset," Obi-Wan said calmly, "I just want to ask you a few questions."

The creature hissed. "Like what?"

"Just questions about who you are and this place, but first let us introduce ourselves. I'm Obi-Wan, and this is Anakin and Ahsoka." Obi-Wan said as he pointed his tail at Anakin and then at Ahsoka.

Anakin gave a quick nod. Ahsoka did the same thing.

"And what is your name?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Ivypaw," the silver and white animal answered.

"Well Ivypaw, could you tell us where we are?"

Ivypaw glared at Obi-Wan.

"You're on ThunderClan territory," she answered, "Now tell me, how did you get this far onto the territory without being spotted?"

"Uh…we kind of don't know," Obi-Wan stuttered, not knowing how to explain that they just woke up and were at the lake shore.

Ivypaw unsheathed her claws like she was offended. "Don't play games with me!"

Ahsoka unleashed her own claws incase the animal was going to attack.

"Well, it's true! We just woke up and we were near a lake!" Ahsoka shouted back, her tail twitching and neck fur rising.

"_Ahsoka!_" Anakin whispered to her.

"Right, so you just _magically_ got transfer there? Do you think I'm _really_ that stupid believe that, you piece of fox dung!" Ivypaw challenged.

Ahsoka hissed loudly at her. Before she knew it, she was charging strait at Ivypaw. She was about to tackle her, but Obi-Wan got in front of her.

"Don't make things worse," he hissed softly.

Ahsoka growled and continued to glare at Ivypaw.

"Ivypaw, what's going on?" a voice said.

Ahsoka looked to see three other animals were walking towered Ivypaw.

"Cinderheart, I found these rouges while I was practicing my hunting and they are trying to make me believe that they appeared out of nowhere at the lake," Ivypaw one called Cinderheart was a gray female with blue eyes.

There was another female who looked just like Ivypaw but with darker fur and lighter eyes. The last one was a male with golden fur and amber eyes.

Cinderheart looked at Obi-Wan, then at Anakin, and then at Ahsoka. After a moment, Cinderheart walked over to Obi-Wan and said calmly, "I'm sorry that my apprentice was so rude, but please tell me why are you on ThunderClan territory?"

"Were basically lost, and we are sorry we intruded," Obi-Wan said, "By the way, I'm Obi-Wan."

Cinderheart nodded. "I'm Cinderheart, I guess you've met Ivypaw. The tom is Lionblaze and the she-cat is his apprentice Dovepaw."

Lionblaze and Dovepaw gave a small nod. "And I'm Anakin and this is Ahsoka," Anakin said. Ahsoka said nothing, but continued to glare at Ivypaw. How dare she insult her! And for nothing!

"How long have you've been here?" Ahsoka heard Lionblaze ask Obi-Wan.

"We…er…are not sure how long," Obi-Wan said.

"Okay..." Ahsoka heard Dovepaw muttered.

"Hey, have any of you seen any other intruders in the area?" Anakin suddenly asked.

Ahsoka gasped. She totally forgot about Grievous and Asajj! Have they been here too? Have they met anyone else?

"Any other cats? Not that I've heard," Lionblaze answered. 

_Cats, so that's what we are_, Ahsoka thought.

"Why, are you looking for someone?" Cinderheart asked confused.

"Yes, but I would like to tell your leader about the two cats that we are looking for, it's very important that we do," Obi-Wan said solemnly.

"Why?" Dovepaw asked.

"Because if they find out that you're here, they might try to take over your clan, or worse, kill you!" Ahsoka blurted out.

Cinderheart and Lionblaze looked at each other, confusion and fear in their eyes.

After a moment of silence Cinderheart turned to them and said, "Alright I'll get Firestar, wait right here. Come on Ivypaw!"

Ivypaw sighed and fallowed her.

"So, tell me who are these cats you speak of?" Lionblaze asked his tail twitching.

"Their evil…cats that belong to any organization that want total control of every…uh…forest," Anakin explained as much as he could about the Separatists that Lionblaze and Dovepaw would understand.

"I see," Lionblaze muttered.

"We'll tell more when your leader comes," Obi-Wan said, "But in the mean time, tell us about your clan."

Lionblaze nodded. "Well," he began, "ThunderClan is a group of cats that live here around the lake. We live in big numbers and we do whatever it takes to survive. We also live with other nearby clans, ShadowClan, WindClan, and RiverClan who want to have as much territory as possible."

Ahsoka listened with interest as Lionblaze explained the life of the clan, the warrior code which is the rules they live by, and what the other clans are like.

"WindClan was once a friend of ThunderClan long ago," Lionblaze had said, "Well, we still are, but not like how it was long ago. We had have difficulties with RiverClan in the past, but for right now we're at peace with them. ShadowClan is very power-hungry. They have tried to take over us at are old home a few times, but thank StarClan that they didn't succeed!"

After Lionblaze finished telling about the other clans, he told them about their wise ancestors, StarClan. He told them about how their warrior ancestors watch them and protect them from harm. When Lionblaze finished, Ahsoka realized that ThunderClan was almost, if not completely, just like the Republic and the Jedi.

_Maybe it was StarClan who brought us here_, Ahsoka said to herself as she thought about the clans, _maybe they want us here to help them or something… _

Finally, Cinderheart and Ivypaw returned with a flame colored male cat. The cat walked over towards Obi-Wan.

"Hello, I'm Firestar, leader of ThunderClan," he said, "Cinderheart told me you wished to speak with me?"


	5. Flametail's Prophecy

"Rowanclaw, what is this? What are these cats doing here!" a large white cat with jet black paws asked Rowanclaw as he brought Dooku, Grievous, and Asajj to ShadowClan camp.

"Blackstar," Rowanclaw said, "we found these cats near the shore of the lake, and they claim that they did not know that they were in ShadowClan territory. I think there they have been…" Rowanclaw continued to talk to Blackstar, but Dooku wasn't listing.

He was too busy looking around the camp to listen.

The camp was a little clearing, with giant trees surrounding it. There where cats everywhere he looked. Some of them where in dens which were made inside of the trees, some were caring what looked like food in their mouths and putting them in a huge pile. The others were staring at ether, Rowanclaw, Blackstar, or him.

"Thank you for telling me this, Rowanclaw, I'll take it from here," Blackstar said when Rowanclaw finished his story.

Dooku turned his full attention to Blackstar as the leader walked towards him. Blackstar glared at him.

"Well, explain yourselves!" he hissed, "Why are you on ShadowClan territory, have you been stealing prey?"

Dooku cleared his throat. "I apologize that me and my friends have intruded on to your home, it's just that were looking for someone."

"Who? Are they on the territory too?" Blackstar asked.

"I'm not sure," Dooku answered calmly, "But I must warn you that if they are here, you and your clan are in terrible danger."

"Is that so?"

Dooku nodded. "They will bring terror to your clan. They will try to take control of you and they won't show_ any_ mercy to you if you refuse to surrender. And if there are any other clans like you in the area, they will take over them as well."

Blackstar glared at Dooku for a moment as if he wasn't sure if he was lying or not.

Finally he turned to Rowanclaw and said, "Go get the senior warriors, were having a meeting."

Rowanclaw nodded and walked away to get the senior warriors. Blackstar turned back to Dooku.

"Fallow me," he ordered.

Dooku nodded and he, Asajj, and Grievous fallowed Blackstar out of ShadowClan camp. As soon as they were out of the camp Asajj walked up to Dooku and whispered, "Dooku, who exactly is 'them?' Are you talking about the Jedi?"

"Yes, who _else_ would I be talking about?" Dooku answered slightly annoyed by her stupid question.

"But are you sure that they are here? We haven't seen them or heard from them since we got here…"

Dooku sighed heavily.

"Asajj, _they are here_. I don't know exactly where, but they are, can't you sense them?"

Asajj hissed at him angrily but didn't say anything.

* * *

Finally, they came across to another clearing, but it was smaller than the camp, had a lot of rocks near it, and there was no activity from any other cats.

"Sit down, Rowanclaw and the other senior warriors should be here soon," Blackstar ordered.

After a few minutes of waiting, Rowanclaw came with a few other cats behind him. Dooku recognized Twanypelt, and a few other cats from the patrol that ambushed him. The cats all sat near Blackstar, while staring at Dooku aggressively.

"Now," Blackstar said when all the cats sat down, "tell us about the cat you where talking about."

"Actually, there are three of them here," Dooku explained, "They came from a clan, similar to yours but bigger called the Jedi."

"And who are these Jedi exactly?" asked one of the cats.

"They are a group of cats that take over other clans, or other strong alliances to make them powerful and strong and they will not rest until they are in control of every cat in the world."

"And how do they plan to take over ShadowClan?" Blackstar asked concerned.

"They'll try to persuade you to join them, and if you don't except their offer they will kill you," Dooku answered darkly.

Blackstar looked from one cat to another. After a few moments of silence, he finally said, "And how do you know that they are coming?"

Dooku then explained how he was once a Jedi, how he formed the Separatists, and told about the Clone Wars.

Or at least as much as he could.

Blackstar stared at him when he finished his story. Dooku couldn't tell if Blackstar was convinced or not.

"And what are the names of the cats the Jedi have sent?" Blackstar asked.

"I know that two of them are named, Obi-Wan and Anakin, but I don't know about the third one," Dooku replied.

Blackstar leaned over to Rowanclaw and whispered something into his ear. Rowanclaw nodded to him and ran towards the direction of ShadowClan camp.

"Have you told any of this to the other clan leaders?" Blackstar questioned curiously.

"No, we haven't seen the other clans yet."

Blackstar nodded and whispered to the other cats. Soon, Rowanclaw returned with two other cats fallowing behind him. One was a small brown male cat; the other was a male with bright ginger fur. Rowanclaw sat down next to Blackstar while the two new cats walked up to him.

"What do you need Blackstar?" the small brown cat asked.

"Littlecloud, didn't you tell me that Flametail had a vision from StarClan not too long ago about three strangers that would come to the camp after a large storm?"

"Yes, why?" Littlecloud said puzzled.

"I just need to ask him something," Blackstar answered calmly.

Littlecloud nodded and stepped back so that the cat called Flametail could talk to Blackstar.

"Are these the cats from you dream, Flametail?" Blackstar asked pointing his tail at Dooku, Grievous, and Asajj.

Flametail looked over towards them. He studied them for awhile, then he let out a loud gasp.

"Yes, it's them!"

Blackstar turned to Dooku. "Our medicine cat apprentice had a dream from StarClan, our ancestors, a few sunrises ago. He said that three strange cats would come."

Flametail walked over towards Dooku, excitement beaming from his eyes.

"Are you three really from a place called Kamino?" he asked curiously.

Dooku stared at the young cat. How does he know about Kamino?

"Er…sort of," he finally said to the young cat.

"Can you really move stuff with your mind?" Flametail asked.

_He knows about the Force too?_

"Flametail, what do you mean 'can you move stuff with their mind?'" Littlecloud questioned.

Flametail turned to his mentor. "StarClan told me that the strangers can move rocks and cats with their minds."

"That is impossible!" Blackstar exclaimed glaring from Flametail to Dooku. "What is he talking about?"

"Uh…well, it's hard to explain, but the Jedi, along with myself and Asajj, have this connection with… I guess you can say 'ancestors' called the Force. We have the ability to move objects with our mind with it."

All of the cats looked at him like he had just lost his mind.

"Prove it," Blackstar challenged.

Dooku sighed and used the Force to move a nearby rock. The cats all stared with amazement as he lifted the rock higher and higher into the air. He finally placed the rock back down as he saw how shocked the ShadowClan cats where.

"…How…" Blackstar stuttered not able to believe what he just saw.

The other cats said nothing.

Flametail looked back at Dooku and asked, "Can you tell me your names please? StarClan never told me what they where…"

"My name is Dooku, and this is Grievous and Asajj," Dooku said.

Both Grievous and Asajj nodded to Flametail.

Flametail nodded back and turned to Blackstar "Do you remember what I told you about the prophecy? That they need to stay for awhile?" he asked.

Blackstar nodded. "I know."

"Wait, what prophecy are you talking about?" Dooku questioned.

Flametail turned to him. "Didn't the Force or StarClan tell you about it?" he asked confusion in his voice.

"No."

"Well," Flametail said, "A cat from StarClan came to me and said,_ Three cats would come after a monstrous storm and they would decide the fate of ShadowClan by helping us in our darkest moment yet_. He also gave me a vision of the storm and you coming to the camp."

"Really," Dooku said unconvincingly.

He never believed in prophecies, not even the one about the Chosen One, who was destined to bring balance to the Force. He always thought that they were just stories that where meant to give uncivilized people hope.

"Well, if StarClan says they need to stay, then they shall stay for awhile," Blackstar said to Flametail, "Just keep an eye on our guests until I get a den for them."

Blackstar walked over to Dooku. "You'll be staying in the camp for awhile until these Jedi are gone. Stay here until I get a den for you and your friends. If you have any questions, ask Littlecloud or Flametail."

Dooku nodded and Blackstar left along with the rest of the senior warriors. As he watched them leave the clearing, Dooku kept thinking about that prophecy Flametail had said. He kept telling himself that it wasn't real, but for some reason it worried him. Why was he worrying about some story an _animal _told him?

What could possible happen to him in an uncivilized clan of animals?


	6. The Republic and the Separatists

Lionblaze stared speechless at Obi-Wan. He could not believe what he just heard!

Obi-Wan had told them that he and his friends, Anakin and Ahsoka, are from an organization called the Jedi Order who use the power of their ancestors called the Force to protect the people of their clan. Well, Lionblaze guessed it was a clan. He didn't understand what the Republic was. Also, they are in a war with this other organization called the Separatists who want to take over and enslave their clan. Not only that, they are from a deferent dimension and somehow, they got transfer to ThunderClan territory. Along two of the Separatists' greatest warriors, but they don't know where exactly. Obi-Wan also told them that the Separatists will want to take over ThunderClan and the other clans as well.

Lionblaze couldn't make sense of what he just heard. How can there be other dimensions? What was even a dimension in the first place? Lionblaze looked over at Cinderheart, Ivypaw, and Dovepaw. They all had confusion in their gazes.

"Can you tell me more about these two Separatists cats?" Firestar asked Obi-Wan who was taking this quite well.

"Well, they are both very skilled warriors, they are coldhearted, and would kill anyone who gets in their way," Obi-Wan said.

"Even our kits?" Firestar asked.

"I wouldn't be surprised if they do," Obi-Wan answered.

Lionblaze felt his claws tear the earth under him. What cat would do such a thing? Killing kits… That's just unspeakable! Lionblaze didn't believe Obi-Wan about the whole dimension story, but he did have a feeling that the cats Obi-Wan spoke of where real. But Lionblaze wondered what was Firestar going to do? Was he going to believe this strange cat or try to chase them off?

"How long have you've been here?" Firestar questioned.

"Not very long."

Firestar stayed silent for a moment. Finally, he turned to Lionblaze and Cinderheart and said, "Take your apprentices and go back to camp, I'll be back soon."

Lionblaze and Cinderheart nodded and they took their apprentices back to camp. On the way back to camp, Lionblaze asked Cinderheart, "Do you believe what Obi-Wan said? About him coming from a different dimension with those other cats?"

"I don't believe the whole 'dimension' nonsense," Cinderheart answered coldly, "But I'm not sure about the Separatists cats..."

Lionblaze nodded. "I feel the same way. But do you think Firestar believed any of it?"

"I don't know, Lionblaze. He has let kittypets and loners into the camp before not to mention _join_ the clan. I just don't know."

* * *

"Jayfeather, are you here?" Lionblaze called out to his brother.

"Yes, I'm here Lionblaze, what do you want?" Jayfeather asked.

The blind ThunderClan medicine cat walked out of his den.

"We need to talk," Lionblaze stated quickly.

Jayfeather sighed heavily and the two cats walked out of ThunderClan camp. When the two brothers were alone, Jayfeather asked, "What's wrong? Is it about the prophecy?"

Long ago, Firestar was given a prophecy that said, _"There will be three kin of you kin who have the power of the stars in their paws." _Three turned out to be Lionblaze, Jayfeather, and Dovepaw. All three of them had special abilities from the prophecy. Lionblaze cannot be hurt in battle; Jayfeather can go into other cat's dreams, and Dovepaw can hear, see, and smell thing very far away. All three of them have kept it a secret. The only cat that knows about the prophecy who isn't part of it was Firestar.

"No, but three strange cats were wondering in our territory today," Lionblaze explained.

Jayfeather ears twitched. "So? What's so strange about that?"

Lionblaze told Jayfeather about Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Ahsoka and what they told Firestar. When Lionblaze finished, Jayfeather gave him a puzzled look.

"Different dimension?" he muttered puzzled, "What in StarClan's name is that suppose to mean?"

"I don't know," Lionblaze confessed, "But have you had any dreams about these Republic or Separatists cats?"

"No, I haven't had any dreams about any cat or anything," Jayfeather answered.

Lionblaze sighed. He hoped that Jayfeather had a dream from StarClan about the three strangers.

"Wait!" Jayfeather cried suddenly.

Lionblaze stared at his brother as Jayfeather's blue eyes started to glow.

"Jayfeather?" Lionblaze said fear cracking in his voice.

But Jayfeather said nothing. He just stood there staring into space, as if he was in a trance.

"_Jayfeather!_"

Jayfeather shook his head while his gray neck fur rose as his eyes returned to normal. He looked at Lionblaze, fear in his eyes.

"Jayfeather, are you okay?" Lionblaze asked concern.

"I…I just had a vision," Jayfeather said recovering from the shock.

"About what?"

"The strange cats," Jayfeather answered, "I saw cats you called Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Ahsoka. They were standing beside a river, but the river wasn't filled with water, it was filled with the souls of cats."

"Cats souls?" Lionblaze asked puzzled.

Jayfeather nodded. "And not just any cats souls, but they where the souls of ThunderClan cats."

Lionblaze gasped. "Who did you see?"

"I saw everyone in the clan, including myself. But that's not the worst of it."

"What can be _worse_ than seeing the souls of our clan mates?"

Jayfeather's face darkened.

"I saw the two Separatists cats near another river. But the river they were at was filled with blood. And after that I saw two cats come from the shadows. The first one I didn't recognized, but the second one was Tigerstar."

"Tigerstar!" Lionblaze cried.

Tigerstar was once a ThunderClan cat long ago. He was a skilled and respected warrior, but he had a huge ambition to take over the clan. He was eventually exiled from ThunderClan after trying to murder the clan leader and for murdering other cats. Later, he became the leader of ShadowClan. He almost took over all of the clans but he was killed by Scourge, the leader of the vicious BloodClan. But even in death, he still tried to take over the clans.

"What does the dream mean, Jayfeather?" Lionblaze asked.

"I think it means that the Republic cats have the fate of ThunderClan in their paws and the Separatists will or try drown are clan in blood with Tigerstar," Jayfeather said still trying to make sense of it himself.

"Should we tell Dovepaw?" Lionblaze asked.

Jayfeather shook his head. "It would freak her out."

Lionblaze agreed.

Dovepaw was shaky with their _own_ prophecy. He didn't think she could handle the knowledge of that their clan might get destroyed.

"We should get back to camp," Jayfeather said.

"Okay, I'm starting to get hungry now anyway."

* * *

"All cats that can catch their own prey come down to Highrock for a clan meeting."

Lionblaze heard Firestar voice as he and Jayfeather came into ThunderClan camp.

"What's going on?" Jayfeather asked.

"Who knows," Lionblaze answered.

He looked up at Highrock to see Firestar looking down at his clan, while three cats sat beside him. Lionblaze gasped.

It was Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Ahsoka.

"It's them!" Lionblaze whispered to Jayfeather, "The three cats are here!"

"Cats of ThunderClan," Firestar said, "You probably saw that I've brought three rouges here. I've talked to them and they came here to warn us of a group of evil cats that are in the area."

"Evil cats? What cats? Are they on ThunderClan territory?" Lionblaze heard a senior warrior named Dustpelt questioned.

"No they are not on ThunderClan territory, for the moment," Firestar answered, "But these evil cats are from a power-hungry clan called the Separatists. They want to take over every cat which they will do anything to reach this goal. Even killing."

Every cat started to talk among themselves.

"Are those cats insane?" a cat called Hazeltail asked fearfully, "Who would dream such a thing, or accomplish such a goal?"

"I don't know," another cat named Mousewhisker said, "But these cats seem to have ambitions like Tigerstar!"

More and more cats talked and muttered to themselves.

"Everyone, calm down, there is nothing to fear," Firestar said.

The clan returned their attention to Firestar, but their eyes still showed fear.

"There is another clan from where the Separatists come from called the Republic. They have warriors called Jedi that fight against evil cats like the Separatists. these three Jedi, Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Ahsoka have been sent here to stop the Separatists' two greatest warriors named Grievous and Asajj from taking over our clan and the other clans."

"And where are these Separatists warriors now?" an elder called Mousefur shouted.

"We're not sure right now," Obi-Wan answered, "but we are sure that they are in the area."

"Until we are rid of this threat, I will let the Jedi stay in camp," Firestar said fishing his speech.

"Wait, you're going to let those rouges stay in our camp, without any proof of what they say is true?" a black long leg warrior questioned.

"Don't worry, Spiderleg," Firestar said, "I'm sure what they say is true."

Spiderleg hissed and went into the warrior's den. Soon the rest of the clan followed him and went to their dens. Firestar then came down from Highrock fallowed by the Jedi and walked over towards Lionblaze and Jayfeather.

"Jayfeather, do you mind if the Jedi stay near your den?" Firestar asked.

"Not at all," Jayfeather answered a little sarcasm in his voice.

"Good, and Lionblaze, could you help set up a den for them?" Firestar said.

"Sure," Lionblaze replied.

He then set up a den and nests for the three cats.

"Sorry, it's not that these aren't the greatest of nests," Lionblaze apologized when he was done, "But the apprentices should give you better bedding tomorrow."

"Thank you, Lionblaze," Obi-Wan said as he Ahsoka and Anakin settled in their den.

Lionblaze nodded and walked over to the fresh-kill. As he ate, he thought about the vision Jayfeather had told him. Did the rivers mean that the Jedi have the fate of his clan mates and if they fail, will the Separatists destroy them all? Are the Separatists working for Tigerstar at this moment? Did Tigerstar even know about them? Did _StarClan_ know about them?

Lionblaze sighed heavily. What was going to happen to him and his clan?


	7. The Cat of the Shadows

Grievous stared up at the night sky as the soft sliver light of the moon glowed over ShadowClan camp. He had been gazing at for awhile now, wondering if he had ever seen this moon before, or this planet. Was this some unknown Outer Rim planet that he was on with an undiscovered race of beings or was he _really_ in a different dimension? Or could all this actually be all just a dream? Maybe Grievous was in a coma and got some brain damage and was imaging all of this? Or worse…

Could he be _dead_?

Could this be a never ending dream that he will never wake up from? Was this some punishment from God to be in an unknown world which he would not survive in? Was he to stay as this creature forever?

Grievous sighed heavily.

He didn't know what to think anymore. At first he really did believe that he had travel through a black hole, portal, or something! But then that cat, Flametail, mentioned Kamino… How could he have known? These animals couldn't have possibly known about a planet that was probably thousands of light years away. After that conversation, Grievous didn't know what to believe anymore.

He was also confused about why he transformed into a cat? It didn't make any sense, no matter how hard he questioned it! This whole thing was going to drive Grievous crazy!

Wait! Maybe that's it…

Maybe Grievous had finally lost it and was in his own insanity. But is that a bad thing? If he had really gone mad, that means he wouldn't have to put up with Dooku and the Separatists ever again! He wouldn't have to face the Count's never ending expectations and tests, the mindless droids who couldn't fallow the simplest orders, and the torture of being a monstrous, unfeeling cyborg. But more importantly…he would never have to see or hear a Jedi ever again. He could finally be at peace. He would never have to face reality again…

Grievous laid his head on his paws. Real or madness, he was curious about these animals and this world. What is this world like? What other kind of life forms live here? What is life like in ShadowClan? Grievous wished he could get up and take a look around. But sadly, Blackstar gave strict orders that he, Dooku, or Asajj could not leave the camp without an escort.

It was like being treated like a youngling who has to tell his parents where he was all the time at every second of the day. This really annoyed Grievous because he was dying to explore. Unlike Dooku and Asajj who thought turning into a cat was a curse, Grievous was surprisingly enjoying himself. He was actually a _living_ person again and not barley alive, dying cyborg. He could feel the ground under him again, hear and see more clearly than ever before, feel the wind go through his fur.

But best of all, he could breath the air and not cough every five seconds! Grievous could also feel hunger and have the ability to taste and eat food again. It has been years since he had last eaten something. He remembered the food that Blackstar gave them was just a small dead animal, not even cooked. But it was the most delicious to Grievous! He didn't care if it was raw or not, he was just glad to finally get something to eat!

He felt what seemed like a smile on his face as he looked forward to learning about this place. Maybe this place won't be so bad after all…

But suddenly the Grievous felt the air became dramatically cold as if all the warmth in the world left. He quickly came to his feet, unsheathing his claws. He could sense that someone was here that shouldn't be. He scanned the camp, looking for any kind of movement. At first Grievous didn't see anything unusual.

But then when he glanced into the dark forest, he saw a dark figure coming out of the darkness. It was a cat with dark brown fur and black stripes with scars almost all over its' body. It had one large scar across it's face and had one of it's ears torn in a v shape. The cat's amber eyes glowed with darkness and evil that could intimidate even the bravest of souls.

Grievous stared at the cat waiting for it to make it's move.

"Are you alright, Grievous?"

He shook his head to see that Rowanclaw was standing beside him.

"Yes," Grievous replied trying not show any anxiety in his voice, "I just thought I saw something in the forest."

Rowanclaw glanced around the camp. "I don't see anything," he said concern.

"It's nothing really," Grievous insured him.

Rowanclaw continued to give him an uneasy look. "Alright, just go back to sleep. You'll need your strength in the morning."

Grievous didn't understand what Rowanclaw meant by that, but he decided not to question it. He then walked back into the den and found a comfortable place to sleep. He looked over towards Dooku and Asajj who where sound asleep, yet they where twitching wildly in their sleep. 

_They must be having a bad dream._

Soon he felt himself drift off into sleep.

* * *

"Grievous, is that you?" a cold female voice muttered in the distance.

Grievous slowly opened his eyes. He found himself looking at a dark forest with no sign of light anywhere.

_How the hell did I get here?_

"Hello! Grievous, are you here?"

Grievous turned his head to see Asajj Ventress glaring at him.

"Ventress, where are we?" he asked still half asleep.

"I have no idea," she replied, "I've been wondering this place for awhile now, no sign of life as far as I can tell though."

"Asajj, Grievous? Is that you?"

Grievous and Asajj turned to see Dooku walking towards them.

"How long have you've been here?" Asajj questioned.

"I don't know, maybe fifteen minutes," the count answered.

Suddenly Grievous could hear footsteps coming towards them. Footsteps that seem to getting closer and closer with every second. 

_Someone else is here!_

He unleashed his claws and started to growl instinctively towards the direction of the noise.

"Grievous, why are you growling like a savage animal?" Dooku asked sounding almost disgusted by the way his general was acting.

In that second, the same figure that appeared in ShadowClan camp came walking towards them. "Finally you showed up," the shady scared cat said to Grievous, "I was beginning to think you would never show up, Grievous."

"How do you know my name?" Grievous hissed angrily.

The cat let out a small chuckle. "I watched you when you arrived at the lake and the conversation you had with Blackstar."

"Okay, look here," Asajj interrupted, "I don't know who the hell _you_ think you are, but I want an explanation as to how we all got here. Right _now_!"

The mysterious cat glared at her. Then without warning, he slashed Asajj's face leaving small bleeding scratches on the left side of her face.

"If you want to leave here in one piece," the cat threatened, "learn to control your tongue!"

Asajj stared at the dark cat, shock and anger in her gaze. 

"Now, let me properly introduce myself," the cat said properly, "My name is Tigerstar, former leader of ShadowClan and now leader of the Dark Forest."

"Oh, you where once the leader of that clan?" Dooku asked curiosity rising in his voice, "Tell me, how your government works in your clan? When do you elect your leaders and how long do they stay in power?"

Tigerstar stared blankly at him. "Government? Elect? What do you mean by that?"

"I…uh…I mean…" Dooku stuttered trying to explain politics.

"He means, how long does a leader stay as the leader," Grievous quickly explained.

"For the rest of their nine lives," Tigerstar answered.

"'The rest of their _nine_ lives'?" Asajj questioned not quite sure if she heard him right.

"That's right," Tigerstar explained, "When deputy becomes leader, he gets nine lives from our warrior ancestors."

"You mean from StarClan?" Grievous said.

Tigerstar's eyes turned dark. "Most of the time, but enough about our traditions, let me explain why I brought you here."

He glanced over them make sure they were paying attention.

"You all are probably clueless on how you got to ShadowClan territory, aren't you? I would be very surprise if you did. _I_ don't even know how you got here _exactly_, but I do know one thing is that you were each brought here from a member of the Dark Forest or StarClan."

Grievous then remembered the prophecy that Flametail had spoke of.

_"Three cats would come after a monstrous storm and they would decide the fate of ShadowClan by helping us in our darkest moment yet." _

Could have StarClan have sent them to ShadowClan? Or did the Dark Forest? He wasn't sure if he should trust Tigerstar though. He just had a bad feeling about this shady cat.

"Anyway," Tigerstar continued, "The reason why I brought you here was to ask you three a favor."

"What kind of favor?" Dooku questioned suspiciously.

"Well, from the way you three acted when you came here, it seemed that each of you has had some battle experience," Tigerstar answered bluntly.

"Yes, but why does it matter? Are you in a war of some kind?"

"Are you going questioning everything I say?" he finally replied annoyance in his voice.

Dooku's tail twitched but he said nothing. Grievous felt amusement as he knew Dooku didn't like being given orders. Even from his master, Darth Sidious.

"But yes, I am in what you call a 'war'. And I am in need of some living warriors to fight. I can reward you greatly if you join me."

"Wait, wait!" Asajj said shocked, "You need _living_ warriors?"

"That is correct."

"So, you're a ghost?" Grievous commented.

"In some sort of way, I am," Tigerstar answered in what sounded like there was amusement in his voice.

_Well, this explains how Rowanclaw couldn't find him back in ShadowClan camp._

"What do you have to offer if we help you?" Dooku asked interested.

"I can return you back to Kamino and back into your original forms," Tigerstar offered, "I can also-"

"Deal!" Dooku exclaimed before Tigerstar could finish his offer.

Tigerstar gave what looked like a small grin. "Good, I'll start your training tomorrow night. Farewell."

He then walked into the dark mist and disappeared from sight.

"Do you really think that was a good idea to trust him?" Grievous questioned Dooku.

"Who cares?" Dooku snapped, "All I care about is being back in civilization!"

"But are you sure Tigerstar is going to do that?" Grievous pointed out, "We don't know who this cat is, and if you ask me I say we should keep are guard up."

"Grievous, you worry too much," Dooku replied bluntly, "What could this mindless, senseless animal do to harm us?"

As he said that, the count left Grievous and Asajj and faded into the mist.

"For once, I agree with you," Asajj commented, "I don't trust this Tigerstar character one bit."

She then left Grievous alone in the Dark Forest. As he left trying to find his own way out, one thought went through Grievous's mind.

Does he really want to go back to the Separatists?


	8. I Don't Understand

"Obi-Wan wake up. Master, wake up," a voice said irritated. Obi-Wan slowly open his eyes to see to see Anakin sitting next to him nudging him with his paw.

"Hi Anakin," Obi-Wan muttered sleepily, "Do you need something?"

"No it's just that we were given some food a little while ago," Anakin answered, "I thought would let you know."

"Great, I'm starving! Where is it?"

"In front of the den, Ahsoka is already there." Obi-Wan walked passed Anakin out of the den to see Ahsoka staring at a dead bird.

"Why do you have a dead bird in your paws?" Obi-Wan asked puzzled.

"Dovepaw said this was breakfast, so I'm trying to get myself to eat it," she replied, "There is one over there if you want it." Obi-Wan stared at the two other dead black birds. He let out a soft sigh, and started to eat one of them. He thought it would taste terrible, but it strangely had a really nice, juicy flavor to it.

"You know, this isn't as bad as it seems," Obi-Wan commented with a mouthful of feathers. Ahsoka stared at Obi-Wan like he was mad. Finally out of hunger, she decided to take a bite of her bird. And like Obi-Wan, she found it strangely delicious. Soon Anakin joined them surprised to find out what the 'food' really was. He gave into hunger as well and reluctantly ate his food. When all three of them finished eating, Obi-Wan saw the two younglings, Ivypaw and Dovepaw coming towards them.

"Why did you hesitate to eat your prey?" Ivypaw asked puzzled.

"We're just not use to eating raw food like this in the Republic," Obi-Wan explained. Ivypaw and Dovepaw stared blankly.

"Where we come from, we cook our food using fire," Ahsoka quickly explained. Dovepaw's eyes grew wide.

"You use _fire_?" she cried amazed.

"How do you control such a thing?" Ivypaw questioned unconvinced.

"Is there something else you need besides questioning how we eat?" Anakin asked slightly annoyed.

"Oh, yeah," Dovepaw said, "Firestar wants to talk to you in his den; we were supposed to bring you there when you where ready."

"Alright, where is his den?" Obi-Wan asked.

"It's right next to Highledge, fallow us." Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Ahsoka fallowed Dovepaw and Ivypaw to Firestar's den. When they got there, they saw Firestar talking to a gray male cat.

"Hello Jedi," Firestar welcomed as he saw them coming into his den.

"Greetings, Firestar," Obi-Wan said, "We were told that you wanted to speak with us?"

"Yes, please come in and make yourselves comfortable." Firestar turned to Ivypaw and Dovepaw. "Thank you for bringing them, you may go now." Both cats nodded and walked out of the den saying goodbye to the Jedi.

"I still don't think this is a good idea," the gray cat warned darkly. As he left the den Obi-Wan noticed that his blue eyes were unusually light and cloudy. _I wonder if he's blind_, he thought.

"So, what do you three think of ThunderClan?" Firestar asked breaking him out of his thoughts.

"Oh, it nice," Obi-Wan replied, "It seems like a nice place to live."

"I'm glad to hear that," Firestar said happily, "But anyway, the reason why I called you was to show you ThunderClan's territory and camp since you're going to stay with us for awhile."

"We'll fallow you lead," Obi-Wan said. Firestar then lead the three Jedi outside back to their den.

"First off, right next to your den is the medicine cat's den. Our medicine cat, Jayfeather, lives and takes care of sick or injured cats here."

"Was that him when we came in your den and the gray cat you talked to yesterday?" Obi-Wan asked as he recalled Firestar talking to a cat named Jayfeather when they first arrived.

"Yes that was him," Firestar answered.

"I'm sorry to ask a personal question, but is Jayfeather blind?"

"Yes, why do you ask?"

"Oh, I just couldn't tell if he was or not, it's no big deal, I was only curious."

"Oh, well let me show you where the rest of the clan sleeps and where we keep our prey."

Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Ahsoka continued to follow Firestar to a smaller den where two elderly cats were sleeping. "This is the Elder's den old warriors come here to retire when they have severed their clan long enough," Firestar explained, "The she-cat is Mousefur, and the tom is Purdy." The elder Mousefur opened her eyes a little at the mention of her name.

"Firestar? Is there something you need?" she asked half asleep.

"No, I'm just showing The Jedi around camp," he answered. Mousefur sat up a little.

"Oh," she said coldly, "I can remember a time when ThunderClan didn't show _every single_ stranger that comes near our territory our home. It almost looks like as if we are asking for an invasion!"

"We would never do something like that!" Ahsoka said offended, "We are thankful for what ThunderClan has done for us."

"Sure you are young one. Sure you are." Mousefur laid her head back down and went back to sleep.

"Don't mind Mousefur," Firestar said to Ahsoka, "She is just not use to you being here, but she'll warm up a little once you've been here for awhile." Ahsoka let out a soft sigh. She glanced up at Obi-Wan and Anakin.

"I don't understand," Ahsoka whispered to them as they continued their tour, "Why doesn't she trust us? Did we do something wrong?"

"No, but we are strangers to them," Anakin explained, "They don't know who we are."

"I know that, but why would that cat assume that we would want to take over ThunderClan?" Ahsoka questioned.

"They probably had trouble with other cats in the past." Obi-Wan said.

"Again, I know that, but can't they tell we have no idea where we are or how the survive here?"

* * *

"I don't see why you're overreacting about, Jayfeather," Lionblaze said a little confusion in his voice, "I know that you don't trust them, but what if we found those Separatists cats? We wouldn't be able to recognize or eliminate them without the Jedi's help."

Jayfeather sighed. He hoped if he told his brother about what he thought about the Jedi, he could help convince Firestar that these cats were not as they seem. But unfortunately, Lionblaze wasn't convinced yet.

"Aren't you a little suspicious, Lionblaze?" Jayfeather questioned angrily, "Don't you think them just 'magically' appearing at The Lake seem a little weird? Don't you have a bad feeling about them? At least tell me that you remember what I've told you about my vision!"

"Calm down, I know! I know what your vision said, but don't you think it meant that they came here to help us? If I were you, I would be worried about The Separatists rather than worrying about how overly queer The Jedi are!" Lionblaze said strongly.

Jayfeather said nothing. Of course he was concerned about the Separatists, but he wasn't convinced that the Jedi weren't as big or even bigger threat.

"So you think we should let these cats who know _nothing_ about our clan do whatever they want and order us around like where one of them?" Jayfeather questioned coldly, "Do you want to take the chance of hurting ThunderClan's reputation or worse, getting us into another war with the other clans?"

Lionblaze let out an annoyed hiss. As he was about to abandon his brother and go back to camp, he turned around and said, "I don't trust them that much myself, but I'm willing to trust them to defend my clan. Plus, I do have a feeling that The Separatists threat is real."

Jayfeather's ears twitched a little, but he didn't argue with his brother as they went back to camp.

"Have you've seen The Jedi, Briarlight?" Jayfeather asked when he entered the medicine cat's den, "Or is Firestar still giving them a tour of our territory?"

The crippled she-cat stopped putting up her herbs that she had collected and turned to Jayfeather. "I'm afraid so," she answered sadly, "They left camp a little while ago."

Jayfeather let out an annoyed soft hiss.

"I really hope he knows what he is doing," he said half to himself.

"I feel the same way," Brairlight replied, "I don't think anyone in the clan likes what he is doing."

"I'm not surprised, anyone with half a brain would see that there is something wrong with them!" Jayfeather exclaimed sharply.

"True, but I wonder why Firestar treats them like old friends." Brairlight wondered.

"I wonder that my-"

Suddenly Jeafeather heard a blood shear scream ring through his ears. Almost in a flash, he found himself near the border between ThunderClan and ShadowClan as he could only see it in different shades of red.

He also saw what looked like a she-cat lying on the ground, gasping for air. Her throat was torn open and blood was gushing our like a waterfall. Above the she-cat a tom was standing over her his paws covered in her blood. Jayfeather tried identify them, but they were too well hidden in the shadows.

_"Traitor! Traitor! Traitor!"_ the tom screamed continuously. Jayfeather continued to stare in horror as watched the scene not knowing what to do.

"Jayfeather! Are you okay? Jayfeather!" Brairlight's voice shouted. Jayfeather shook his head to see that he was blind again and that he as lying on the ground with a paw on shaking him.

"Jayfeather?" Brairlight asked worried.

"What happened?" he asked the half paralyzed cat.

"I don't know, you just started to shake madly and you fell to the ground," she explained, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine; I just need to rest for awhile. Let me know when Firestar returns."

Jayfeather went over to his nest and closed his eyes. He wanted to try to recover from that gruesome vision. But he didn't want to fall asleep because as soon as Firestar gets back, he would tell him both visions.

One thing he knew for sure is that both visions he had where connected and that the Jedi where a big part of it. But the thing he didn't understand was, what did that she-cat do to make the other cat so furious? And more importantly, was that she-cat or tom a ThunderClan cat?

* * *

"And here is the ShadowClan border," Firestar said. He had just taken The Jedi to the ShadowClan border, which was the last place they need to see in ThunderClan's territory.

Obi-Wan looked over ShadowClan's territory. It was covered in dark pine trees and mushy ground. He could also see dry blood stains on the all over the ground between the two territories.

"Was there a battle here?" Obi-Wan asked. Firestar let out a soft sigh.

"Unfortunately, yes there was," he replied quietly, "We had a huge battle with them not to long ago."

"Why were you fighting them?" Anakin asked curiously.

"Ivypaw had a dream from our warrior ancestors, StarClan, that we need to take back some territory I gave ShadowClan a long time ago or they would invade us. I told their leader, Blackstar, that we need that piece of territory back. He refused to give it up so we ended up fighting for it. We barely won when Lionblaze killed their previous deputy, Russetfur."

"Why would they fight for just a piece of land?" Ahsoka questioned, "I mean, is it really worth fighting for?"

"I don't think it is," Firestar answered bluntly, "But Blackstar must think so since he wanted to fight for it. But enough about that, we should get back to camp. It is getting late now."

As the four of them walked back to ThunderClan camp, Obi-Wan leaned over towards Anakin and whispered, "Did you feel disturbance in the Force while we were near ShadowClan territory?"

"Yes, do you think Grievous and Asajj are over there?" Anakin asked.

"I have a feeling that their close by," Obi-Wan replied.

"You think they ran into ShadowClan?"

Obi-Wan sighed deeply.

"I really hope not, if they did, who knows what could happen to ShadowClan, or what could happen to the other clans," he said darkly.


	9. Can They Be Trusted?

"Firestar, we need to talk right now," Jayfeather ordered as he approached Firestar.

The flame colored tom sat up from his nest. He looked up at him and asked sleepily, "Jayfeather, what is it?"

"I need to discuss something about the Jedi," Jayfeather answered.

"If it is about kicking them out of the clan, my answer is still the same," Firestar said irritation in his voice.

"No it isn't about that. But you might reconsider that after what I have to tell you."

"Oh really, well what is it then?"

Jayfeather then told Firestar about his two dreams and how the Jedi where deeply connected to them. "I'm telling you, Firestar," he said darkly, "These Jedi are going to destroy ThunderClan if we don't do something about them!"

Firestar stared at Jayfeather intensely. "I see your point," he said solemnly, "But we can't just throw them out after we've been so kind to them and don't forget about the Separatists."

"Didn't you listen to a word I said?" Jayfeather hissed angrily, "I know that the Separatists are still a big threat, but we can get rid of them without the Jedi's help! But if we keep them in our territory, we are at a bigger chance of getting attacked from them!"

"I know. But we need the Jedi's knowledge of the Separatists cats so we can get rid of them sooner."

"But can we really trust them that they will help protect ThunderClan?"

"They will."

"And how do you know that?" Jayfeather demanded angrily.

"Because _I_ had a vision from one of _their_ warrior ancestors," Firestar said with almost no emotion, "I know what I am doing, Jayfeather."

Silence filled the den as the two toms glared at each other. Jayfeather finally let out a strong hiss and stalked out of the den. Anger filled through him. Why can't Firestar see how mouse-brain this is! He didn't care if Firestar saw the Jedi's fox hearted warrior ancestors. Jayfeather failed to believe that he should forget all logic and start fallowing them as if they where some kind of savior! Jayfeather laid down in his nest. His clan may be willing to listen to them, but that didn't mean he wouldn't still keep a strong close eye on the Jedi.

* * *

"Flametail are you sure that these Separatists cats are trust worthy?" Flametail's sister, Dawnpelt asked concerned.

Flametail swallowed his bite of frog. "Of course I do," he answered, "If StarClan trusts them; then I trust them."

"But aren't you a little suspicious on why StarClan brought them here?" his brother, Tigerheart questioned.

Flametail was about to speak, but he stopped himself. Now that he thought about it, why did StarClan bring the Separatists? It was not like ShadowClan was having problems unless you count the after math of that battle with ThunderClan. Was their purpose to protect or warn ShadowClan and maybe the other clans from the Jedi? He wasn't sure.

"I'm…I'm not sure exactly why," Flametail finally admitted, "But I believe it has something to do with the Jedi."

"I know, but it still sounds suspicious to me," Tigerheart replied still uneasy.

"I hope they do get rid of these Jedi," Dawnpelt muttered disgust in her voice, "Those Jedi sound more cowardly and ambitious then ThunderClan!"

"Come' on, Dawnpelt," Tigerheart said, "Not all of ThunderClan is like that; remember our mother's brother, Brambleclaw."

"I was talking about the clan in general; I know that not all ThunderClan cats are like that!" Dawnpelt replied.

Flametail laughed a little as his littermates argued and competed with each other like they usually do.

"Flametail," a voice suddenly said behind him.

Flametail turned around to see Littlecloud coming towards him. "Blackstar has called us into his den," he explained.

"Okay, I'll be right there."

He said good-bye to his siblings and fallowed his mentor to their leader's den. When they got there, Blackstar was sitting there waiting for them. "Thank you for coming, Littlecloud, Flametail," he said as both of them sat down.

"It is no problem, Blackstar," Littlecloud replied happily, "So, what do you need?"

"I was just curious if either of you had any more dreams from StarClan about the Separatists," Blackstar said.

"No, why?" both Littlecloud and Flametail asked at the same time. Blackstar's eyes darkened.

"What's wrong?" Flametail asked noticing his leader's darkening look.

"I think I had a dream from _their_ warrior ancestors last night," Blackstar said, "They told me to watch my back and not let them out of my sight."

"Really?" Littlecloud said surprised.

"Although I'm not sure what they mean by that," Blackstar confessed.

"What do you think we should do?" Littlecloud asked.

"I've talked with Rowanclaw and we both agreed that we should keep them in camp at least until the Jedi are gone, and then from there we will decided what to do with them," Blackstar explained.

Littlecloud nodded. "I agree, is there anything else you need?"

"No, you may go now."

Both Littlecloud and Flametail left Blackstar's den and went back to their own. As they left, Flametail looked over towards the Separatists' den to see them all asleep. Could the Separatists help ShadowClan against the Jedi or will they bring disaster to them? Flametail wasn't sure what to think now. He just hoped that he didn't put his clan in danger.


	10. Visions, Requests, and Offers

Anakin ran through a dark tunnel trying desperately to find a way out. He had no idea how he got here, but he knew he had to get out of here and fast. But the tunnel was so pitch black he couldn't see where his own paws were. Anakin finally slowed down to catching his breath. As gasped for air, he heard a small voice. At first, he could barley tell what it was, but it then turned into a voice of a young female cat, and then a young male.

"Hello?" Anakin called out his voice echoing.

As he said that the tunnel seemed to lighten up and two cats appeared. One was bright orange and white male and the other was a black female. Anakin stared a little frightened at the two cats as they stared back with no emotion in their eyes. Finally, Anakin said, "Hello, my name is Anakin and I'm lost. Can you help me?"

The male walked closer to him. "You're in the tunnels," he answered innocently.

"What tunnels; am I still in ThunderClan?"

"ThunderClan?" The cat stared at him blankly.

"He's talking about my clan, Fallen Leaves," the black female said.

She then turned her head to Anakin. "Fallen Leaves has been trapped here a very long time, he hasn't seen the surface in moons," she explained.

"Why, who are you?" Anakin asked puzzled.

The cat's green eyes glared at him coldly. "My identity is not your concern," she said darkly, "Now, I don't know who you are or how you got here, but you need to leave."

"I would like to, but I can't find a way out. Can you please help me?"

Suddenly darkness came through the tunnels consuming the mysterious cat and Fallen Leaves. Anakin ran away from the fast approaching darkness as fast as he could. As he did he heard voices again. He heard Fallen Leaves's cries for help as rushing water washed over them. He heard the female cat shout utter nonsense as rock slide seem to destroy them. He heard what Anakin could of sworn was the dying cry of Ahsoka. And he heard the cries of agony from Padme. And then everything went silent as Anakin woke up right back in ThunderClan camp.

* * *

"Hello, is anybody here?" Obi-Wan cried.

He was in ThunderClan camp in his den, but there was nobody around. Although nothing seemed out of place, a strong, unpleasant feeling filled the camp.

_What's going on?_

Obi-Wan decided to leave the camp and search the outskirts of the territory. He continued to wonder until he came to the border of ShadowClan. Obi-Wan looked into ShadowClan's forest again like he did before. He could still feel a deep disturbance in the Force, but yet it wasn't the same as it was before. It was a feeling as if someone was in deep stress.

Obi-Wan crossed over the border hoping he could help that person in trouble. As he headed further into the forest, he found an old, abandon building. And right beside it was cat. Obi-Wan walked closer to the distressed cat.

"Are you all right?" he asked concerned.

The cat turned its' head towards him. It was a furless female with light blue eyes full of fear. Obi-Wan sworn that the animal looked strangely like…

"Asajj?" he asked the cat.

Asajj looked up at Obi-Wan, glaring at him. She then ran away from him, heading further into ThunderClan territory. "Follow me," she said.

Everything faded into black as Obi-Wan woke up back in right back in his den, his thoughts full of confusion.

* * *

Ahsoka screeched in pain as she was rammed into a tree. A dark fur cat laughed a little as he said, "Is that the best you've got? I was expecting a lot more from a Jedi."

Ahsoka hissed angrily as she charged at the cat with all of her strength. She landed on top of him as her claws and teeth tore into his fur. The cat shrieked painfully as he tried to throw her off. Ahsoka then let go of him and threw him against a rock with the Force. She walked towards to the fallen cat.

"Still think the Jedi are weak?" she taunted him.

The cat wheezed a little but didn't reply. Ahsoka glared at him and began to walk away. But before she could leave, another dark fur cat appeared in front of her only this one was bleeding and had scratches and scars all over him. She stared at him a little shocked from his appearance.

"You seem like a good fighter," he said to her, "I'm impressed."

"Thank you," Ahsoka replied.

"Are all Jedi are as good as you?" he asked his amber eyes glowing with curiosity.

"I don't like to brag, but I'm pretty good," Ahsoka answered, "But you should see my master, he is an amazing fighter!"

"I see, but if you don't mind, I would like request something from you, Ahsoka," the cat said.

"Sure, but how do you know my name?" she questioned a little alarm.

"I've heard the Jedi where good fighters and I wanted to put that to the test and I chose you to prove if that was true. By the way, my name is Tigerstar, leader of the Dark Forest."

"Okay, but why do you need a Jedi?" Ahsoka asked puzzled.

"I want to ask if you would like to train with us. We could use a swift, fast thinking warrior. You could also help the Republic and ThunderClan if you train with us," Tigerstar offered.

Ahsoka stayed silent for a moment. She wasn't sure if she should trust Tigerstar. She sensed a great disturbance in the Force around him. But it couldn't hurt to train a little. Maybe she can prove to ThunderClan that she is trustworthy.

"Alright, when do we start?" Ahsoka answered eagerly.

"Tomorrow night, you will come here when you go to sleep. You will be training with my son, Hawkfrost and his apprentice."

"'I'll come here when I'm asleep'? What do you mean by that?" Ahsoka asked. But Tigerstar was already gone and she woke up back in ThunderClan.

* * *

Dooku collapsed to the ground gasping for air. He had just come back from training in the Dark Forest with Grievous and Asajj. All three of them one by one fought Tigerstar. He was such an amazingly strong and fast fighter. Dooku could barely defend himself from Tigerstar's deadly strikes. The only way that he could attack him was using the Force, but that even took his strength even more. Grievous and Asajj had better luck then he did though, which did impress Tigerstar.

"You all fought really well," Tigerstar had told them, "With a little more training, I'm sure all three of you can be valuable warriors."

After that, Tigerstar freed them to go. Dooku closed his eyes and began to feel a little shimmer of hope. It won't be long before he would be able to return to the Separatists and he won't have to see these savages ever again. He can finally have order. He then opened his eyes to find himself in black abyss, with no signs of light. Dooku got up and looked around. Was he still in the Dark Forest?

"Tigerstar?" he asked hoping to find an answer.

But no answer came. Dooku sighed. Was this some kind of joke? Was he dreaming?

"You think powerful, don't you, Count?" a voice asked coldly.

Dooku jumped a little to see Asajj walking, almost limping towards him.

"Ventress, don't sneak up on me like that!" Dooku snapped angrily.

Asajj stared at him, blood dripping from her pelt.

"Why are you covered in blood?" he questioned disturbed.

"'Why are you covered in blood?' Like you don't know." Dooku turned around to see Grievous coming towards him, he too covered in blood.

"What's going on, I demand to know!" he ordered unsheathing his claws.

"You think you can use us like this?" Grievous asked darkly, "Do you _really_ believe we wouldn't notice?"

"What are you talking about, Grievous?" Dooku asked stepping away from them.

"Do you also believe you can just betray us and get away with it?" Asajj questioned unleashing her claws.

"What betrayal? Did you two hit your head?" Dooku backed up against an invisible wall trapped by Asajj and Grievous's bloodthirsty glares.

"We are tired of being used for your entertainment," both Grievous and Asajj said at the same time, "Now it is time you get what you deserve!"

Both of them attacked Dooku at once has he there stood there defenseless. He then woke up back in his den shaking uncontrollably.

* * *

"Great, now where am I?" Asajj asked herself angrily.

She was tired from her battle with Tigerstar and was looking forward to some sleep. After she left the Dark Forest, she found herself in some kind of field. It was peaceful with small animals running around and cats all over the place.

"Hello, can someone tell me where I am?" she called out to them.

But no one notice her called as they continued to talk, chase the smaller animals, or sleep. Asajj hissed a little annoyed. Then a dark ginger female cat walked up to her.

"Are you Asajj?" she asked hopefulness in her voice.

"Yes, can you help me? I've somehow gotten here and I would very much like to leave," Asajj requested.

The ginger cat's eye lighted up. "I'm glad we were finally able to contact you," she said, "My name is Russetfur, the pervious ShadowClan deputy."

"Okay, but why are you trying to contact me?" Asajj asked confused.

"Everything will be explained in a moment; right now please follow me."

Asajj followed Russetfur to the far edge of the field to find a long furred black female cat asleep.

"Wait here," Russetfur ordered Asajj.

She nodded as Russetfur left to talk to the other cat. Asajj sighed. She didn't know if she felt angrier that they brought her here or if she was more confused to what was going on. Soon, the black cat came towards Asajj as Russetfur left.

"Hello, Asajj, my name is Shadowstar, founder of ShadowClan," she said.

"Uh…hi," Asajj replied.

"I know that you are clueless as to how and why you are here," Shadowstar said, "But I need to ask you something very important."

"Alright, I'm listing," she assured a little sarcasm in her voice.

"Do you know why you, Dooku, and Grievous are here?"

"No, why?"

Shadowstar sighed. "I was hoping you knew, but let me get more to the point." she answered. Shadowstar stared at the ground for a moment trying to find the right words to say. Finally, she asked unexpectedly, "What is your leader's plan for ShadowClan?"

"Uh…I don't know, probably nothing. He doesn't think that highly of your clan," Asajj answered truthfully.

Shadowstar glared at her.

"I know who you and your companions are, Asajj. I know what you've done back in your own world and what you are capable of," she said coldly, "I can tell that Dooku has a plan for my clan."

"Well if you don't trust me, then why did you bring me here?" Asajj questioned scratching the ground with her claws.

"Because I don't want to see my clan destroyed! I know that Dooku has the power along with the Jedi to do that. I am asking you to protect my clan. I know you have a purpose in this our world, and I hope it is not what I think it is, but I want you to prevent it from happening. I don't fully trust you I'll admit, but I am begging you. Please save ShadowClan."

Asajj stared at Shadowstar. She was having a hard time taking all of this in. How could _she_ protect ShadowClan and for that matter, why should she?

"Why are you telling me this and not Dooku or even Grievous? They have more power then I have," she asked.

"I would have, but I couldn't contact them. You where the only one I could barely get a hold of," Shadowstar answered sounding almost impatient and worried.

Asajj stared at the ground. Even if she wanted to would she be able to? And for that matter, what was Shadowstar so scared of? What purpose could they have to scare her like this? Asajj sighed heavily.

"Will you take me home if I do this?" she asked.

"I'll find a way to, of course. So you will do it?"

Asajj nodded weakly.

Shadowstar's eyes light up. "Thank you, Asajj. You won't regret it."

And then Asajj woke up back in her den wondering to herself if this was this a good idea.

* * *

Grievous took a drink of water from a nearby stream. He was incredibly thirsty and tired from his battle with Tigerstar. He also felt really pound of himself for he gave Tigerstar a fight he will not soon forget. He still didn't feel like he could trust him, but maybe joining the Dark Forest won't be so bad after all.

Grievous sat down beside the stream about to fall asleep. But then he saw something very unusual the stream. It was turning from crystal blue to bright red color. He tasted the water to get the taste of blood.

_Why is there blood in the stream?_

He then followed the stream to find it leading to the lake. The lake itself was now filled with blood. Grievous went down to the lake to get a closer look. As he gazed into the lake he saw what looked like a face of a Jedi padawan that he had killed long ago. Grievous blinked hoping he was just seeing things. But the face was still there.

More and more faces of Jedi that he had murdered began to appear onto the lake's surface. Grievous was about to run away when he felt a hand grabbed him by the leg pulling him into the lake. Grievous tried to fight back but the force was too powerful. He was then pulled into the lake drowning in his victims' blood. Grievous tried to swim to shore but something was holding him back refusing to let him go.

"Help!" he cried coughing.

He then looked over towards the shore to see cats that he had seen in ShadowClan camp fighting a huge silver cat. The silver cat was brutally killing the cats, one, by one each of them fell to the ground their blood running into the lake. Grievous watched as the killing spree continued unable to help them.

Eventually all of them where dead and the silver cat was soaked in their blood. The sliver cat then turned his bloodthirsty gaze to Grievous. Grievous stared in horror when he saw that silver cat was him. Finally he was completely under water falling into the dark red abyss of the lake. He then woke back in ShadowClan camp completely out of breath.


	11. Things Are Not Always What They Seem

"Hey, Master could I talk to you for a second," Ahsoka asked Anakin nervously.

Anakin opened an eye as he woke from his mid afternoon nap. "Sure, Snips, what is it?" he replied sleepily.

"Well, I…er…" Ahsoka stuttered, "Have you've ever talked to a dead person in a dream before?"

Anakin stared at her, fear in his gaze. "No, what's wrong Ahsoka?" Anakin asked concerned.

Ahsoka stuttered again, trying to find the right words. "I…uh…I-I need to talk to Firestar!"

She then ran out of the den hearing Anakin call out to her. How could she think that he would take her meeting with Tigerstar well without him worrying! She didn't even know who he was or knew anything about him. Ahsoka hoped that maybe Firestar would know or would be able to tell her who Tigerstar was, or is.

She entered Firestar's den hoping to see him but instead, she saw sandy color cat. The cat looked over at Ahsoka when she noticed that she was there.

"Hello, Jedi. Is there something I can help you with?" the cat asked.

"Who are you; do you know where Firestar is?" Ahsoka asked desperately.

"My name is Sandstorm, Firestar's mate," the cat answered, "I think he is hunting with Graystripe right now."

"Oh, will he be back soon?"

"I don't know, I could tell him that you wanted to see him though."

"Okay, thank you."

Ahsoka left Sandstorm and sighed heavily as she walked back to her den.

"What did you need Firestar for?"

Ahsoka jumped as she saw Jayfeather coming towards her. "I…need to ask him something," Ahsoka said trying to keep her voice steady.

Jayfeather glared at her coldly. "What was your question? I'm sure I could answer for you," he offered.

"No thanks, I can wait for him to return," Ahsoka replied coldly as she went over to the fresh kill pile.

* * *

"Firestar, can I ask you something, in private?" Ahsoka asked when Firestar returned from his hunt with Graystripe.

"Sure, we'll talk in my den," Firestar answered as he said good bye to Graystripe. When they were in the den and making sure that they were out of ear shot, Ahsoka blurted out, "Did you know a cat named Tigerstar?"

Firestar's eyes grew wide with shock and his neck fur rose a little. "Yes I did. Why do you ask?" he questioned nervously.

Ahsoka then explained her fight with the Dark Forest cat and her meeting with Tigerstar, but she did leave out her excepting his offer to train with them though. She was not quite sure how Firestar would take it, seeing as he was edgy with this conversation. After she was finished, Firestar was silent for a moment.

"Ahsoka, I must warn you that Tigerstar cannot be trusted no matter what," Firestar finally said, "He almost destroyed the clans many moons ago. He would probably like to see the clans destroy themselves and for what you've have told me, he might have plan for you and maybe for Anakin and Obi-Wan as well."

Ahsoka flicked her tail a little nervously. Did she really make a deal with an undead cat and more importantly, an evil enemy to ThunderClan and the other clans? What had she done?

"If he wants to destroy the clans, he might be working with the Separatists as well," Ahsoka added mostly to herself.

Firestar's eyes darkened. "Ahsoka, next time when you see Tigerstar, tell him you refuse his offer. Hopefully he will leave you alone if you do," he advised.

Ahsoka nodded and walked out of the den. "Don't mention this to your fellow Jedi though," Firestar called out before she left, "I will tell them myself tomorrow."

Ahsoka looked back and nodded in reply as she wondered what Tigerstar planned to do with her.

* * *

Ahsoka blinked sleepily as she found herself back in the Dark Forest where she met Tigerstar. She groaned as she looked around looking for any sign of Tigerstar.

_Maybe I could try to leave,_ Ahsoka thought hopefully.

"Greetings, Ahsoka."

She turned to see a cat that looked exactly like Tigerstar only with icy blue eyes and a white chest.

"Are you Hawkfrost?" Ahsoka asked, "Tigerstar said I would be training with you."

"Yes, I am Hawkfrost," the dark cat said, "I am pleased to meet you."

"Yeah, me too."

Hawkfrost moved closer towards Ahsoka. "Come, I need you to meet my apprentice," he ordered, "Fallow me."

Ahsoka fallowed Hawkfrost deeper into the forest. She noticed that there no light what so ever here, now having a better look at it.

_How can they even see here?_

Soon, they came across a small clearing. There stood a silver and white female cat. Wait, it can't be…

"Ivypaw!" Ahsoka exclaimed shocked.

Ivypaw stared at Ahsoka. "What is _she_ doing here?" she said her gaze drifting from Ahsoka to Hawkfrost.

"Good to see that you two already know each other," Hawkfrost said amusement in his voice. He then sat down at the edge of the clearing and cleared his throat.

"Now, for our first part of training, I want you two to pretend you're in a battle," he instructed, "Ivypaw will be defending her territory, while you, Ahsoka, invade her."

"How long do we fight, and what are the rules?" Ahsoka asked.

"You fight as long as I tell you to, and there are no rules, the only thing you should be concerned about is that you succeed."

"Okay."

Ahsoka didn't really want to fight Ivypaw, but it looked like she didn't have a choice. She then reluctantly ran towards Ivypaw and slashed her paw at her with her claws sheathed. Ivypaw flinched but she made a quick recovering as she hissed furiously. She then charged into Ahsoka, making her fall to the ground. Ivypaw got on top of Ahsoka, sinking her teeth into her fur, but not so hard to make her bleed, but enough to be painful. Ahsoka growled, and flung Ivypaw off of her. They continued to charge into each other, biting and hitting each other with their paws. Then Ivypaw without knowing unsheathed her claws and scratched Ahsoka's shoulder. Ahsoka cringed in pain as blood fell from her cut. Ivypaw gasped.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you!" she confessed.

"Enough!" Hawkfrost yelled. He then came towards Ivypaw.

"You shouldn't have stopped like that!" he hissed, "You almost had her! And why where your claws sheathed in the first place?"

"Well, she is new here," Ivypaw explained, "I didn't want to hurt her, especially on her first day here."

Hawkfrost growled at her a little and then turned his attention to Ahsoka. "As for you, you should have been more aggressive," he criticized, "You'll never be able to win a battle that way!"

Ahsoka glared at Hawkfrost coldly.

"I will not harm a cat in training," she said strongly, "Nor shall you force me to. I do accept your training, but I will fight they way _I_ want to fight. Jedi don't fight aggressively in any way shape or form unless we are defending ourselves or others."

Hawkfrost glared at her with an evil gleam in his eyes. "Apparently you are more stubborn then my father had said, but that will soon change, I'll let you two rest for a bit before we continue. I shall expect you ready when I return."

He then left Ahsoka and Ivypaw in the darkness of the clearing. Ahsoka turned to Ivypaw and asked, "Is this what training like here?"

"It is a little aggressive, but it is worth it."

Ivypaw's eyes darkened.

"Because of this training, I will soon be able to prove to my clan that _I_ am the better warrior, and not my so called 'special' sister!"

"'So called special sister'? What do you mean by that?" Ahsoka asked puzzled.

Ivypaw began to pace a little as she ranted, "Everyone treats Dovepaw like she is some fantastic warrior, for absolutely no reason! Even when we only just became apprentices, she got to go on a special journey! Why? I don't even know why! And while she gets all this attention from the senior warriors, I get treated like I'm just second best! Why does Dovepaw get all of the attention? Why does Dovepaw get to be in secret meetings with Firestar? Why does _Dovepaw_ get everything?"

Ahsoka stared at Ivypaw. She didn't seem to be in such misery or jealously when she first met her. Ivypaw then looked up at Ahsoka.

"I'm sorry for ranting," she apologized, "It's just that I've been holding all this frustration in for such a long time with no one to talk to about it."

"It's all right," Ahsoka said sympathetically, "I have had to keep all my emotions and pain inside me as well, with no one to talk to about them either."

"Really, why?"

"Well, Jedi aren't supposed to have attachments or get angry. It is a long story as to why, but it is really hard to do. I have had times where I would just snap because of it."

Ivypaw blinked. "Why can't you get angry?" she asked confused.

Ahsoka sighed. How could she explain it?

"Well," she began, "the Force is very really complicated thing to explain but if you let your feelings take over your decisions, you end up going to the Dark Side of the Force."

"The Dark Side, what is that?"

"It is when you use the Force for your own evil, selfish purposes instead of using it to help other people." Ahsoka claws dug into the ground as she thought of Sith and the Separatists.

"The Separatists leader, Count Dooku, uses the Dark Side of the Force. He is what the Jedi call a Sith Lord, who are people who use the Dark Side of the Force. He has done terrible things to the Jedi Order and the Republic because of his own, selfish ambition."

Ivypaw listen in wonder as Ahsoka continued to tell her about the Separatists, the Sith, the Jedi Order, and the Clone Wars.

"Wow," Ivypaw said when Ahsoka finished talking, "You Jedi live a hard life."

Ahsoka sighed heavily. "Yes, but it is worth it in the end," she said.

"You guys aren't as bad as I thought," Ivypaw admitted, "Hopefully we can stop those fox hearted Separatists!"

Ahsoka laughed as she and Ivypaw continued to chat until Hawkfrost showed up.

* * *

"That's it! More power, more speed!" Tigerstar cried as Grievous and Asajj fought each other brutally.

Both of them had scratches, bite marks, and blood all over them. Asajj hissed furiously as she charged herself into Grievous. But Grievous dogged just a few inches away as he slapped her hard on the back with his paw. Asajj fell to the ground but quickly got up and attacked again. As the battle continued, an orange and white she-cat watched them from a distance unseen.

She watched them carefully as two cats tore themselves apart. The she-cat laughed a little as she enjoyed violence and bloodshed.

"Enjoying yourself, Mapleshade?" a voice asked.

Mapleshade turned around to see a dark tom with a broken tail coming towards her and then sat next to her.

"Indeed I am, Brokenstar," she replied coolly.

Brokenstar turned his attention to the fight as Grievous sunk his teeth into Asajj's hind leg. She cried in pain as Dooku, who was sitting next to Tigerstar, flinched a little but had no emotion in his eyes.

"Their pretty skillful, Grievous and Asajj," Brokenstar commented impressed.

"Shouldn't you be training Breezepelt?" Mapleshade asked suddenly, "Or is he just too difficult for you to train?"

Brokenstar hissed as he answered, "I just finished tonight's training with him actually."

A painful cry came from Grievous as Asajj scratched him in the face. Mapleshade then saw Tigerstar come between them.

"Enough!" he ordered, "This is enough training for now. You are free to go now."

"Good thing to," Asajj taunted, "Otherwise Grievous would be _nothing_ but a bloody corpse if I had him a little longer!"

Grievous hissed furiously. "You wouldn't have lasted a second out there if I had used my full strength!" he yelled angrily.

Asajj laughed and continued to taunt him as Grievous threatened her back. Finally, Dooku walked towards them and shouted, "Stop it! You two are giving me a head ach!"

Then the three Separatists cats disappeared and Tigerstar left, limping a little. Mapleshade flicked her tail a little. These cats must be even more powerful then she had thought to have injured Tigerstar like that.

"Is there a reason why you're interested in these cats?" Brokenstar suddenly asked.

"Well, there not normal clan cats, first off," Mapleshade answered, "Plus, I wanted to make sure if Tigerstar was right."

"I see. You didn't think his plan would work did you?"

Mapleshade shook her head.

"Yes and no. There was high chance of them helping us, but I wasn't quite sure if it would work or if we could trust them to keep their loyalty to us."

She paused for a moment. Thinking back on it, it did seem unlikely that the Separatists would fall for Tigerstar's offer. But now it seemed that it worked so well as to get one of those Jedi to come.

"But now," she continued, "it seems that this could work."

Brokenstar looked at her. "You have your own plan for them, don't you, Mapleshade?"

Mapleshade laughed wickedly.

"Of course I do, Brokenstar, why do you think I _allowed_ Tigerstar to bring them to the Dark Forest in the first place?"


	12. Rising Tension

"Is he alright?"

"How did he get so much blood on him?"

"Why isn't he moving?"

"Is he even alive?"

Grievous heard voices ring through his ears as he slowly tried to wake up. He was in so much pain and felt so stiff. He tried to open his eyes, but something was keeping them shut. He shifted a little trying to figure out where he was.

"I think I saw him move!" a voice exclaimed.

"It's alright, Grievous," another voice said, "I'm just cleaning your wounds. I'll be done in a second."

Grievous said nothing and relaxed a little as the cat continued. When the cat finished, Grievous was finally able to open his eyes. He saw Littlecloud and some other cats looking at him worriedly. "Are you alright, Grievous?" Littlecloud asked concern.

"I'm fine," Grievous answered as he tried to walk out of the den.

"How did you get those injuries?" a cat asked him, "Did you have a fight with Asajj or something?"

"Asajj?" Grievous stared at her blankly.

"You and Asajj where covered in blood and barley moving when Snowbird found you during the middle of her night watch. Since then, Littlecloud and Flametail have been watching you and have been taking care of you wounds."

"I don't really remember how I got these," Grievous lied. How could he have these injuries from the Dark Forest? He wasn't there physically, was he?

"Give him some space, Dawnpelt," Littlecloud said, "I'm sure he can explain later."

"Sure he will," Dawnpelt muttered under her breathe as she walked away. Soon the other cats that where in the crowd left as well.

"Is there anything you need, Grievous?" Littlecloud asked once all the cats were out of ear shot.

"No, but I would like to go out take a walk for a little while," Grievous replied.

Littlecloud's eyes darkened a little. "If you want to, just be back by Sunhigh."

Grievous nodded and walked out of ShadowClan camp. As he walked, he wondered how he was going to explain this. _How am I going to tell them that me and Asajj where training in a forest run by a ghost? _

He sighed heavily as he looked up to realize he was at the lake shore. Grievous felt his neck fur began to rise a little. He was still greatly disturbed from his dream. He could still taste the blood that he had drowned in and could still see himself murdering all the cats in ShadowClan. Now that he thought about it some more, _why_ did he kill them? They didn't do anything to anger him or anything to make him want to kill them. In fact, they have been really nice to him. Even Blackstar was becoming a little friendlier, although he did give him, Dooku, and Asajj uneasy looks.

Grievous walked towards the edge of the lake. He stared at his reflection, remembering the bloodthirsty look his eyes had. Suddenly, his reflection turned into the same Jedi padawan's face that he had seen in his dream, glaring at him with bloodthirsty eyes. Grievous flinched back and stared fearfully into the lake.

"Afraid of a little water, Grievous?"

Grievous turned around to see Asajj looking at him, amusement in her eyes. "No," Grievous answered coldly, unsheathing his claws.

Asajj laughed a little. "Aw, did I offend you?" she taunted playfully.

Grievous hissed. "Do you have a death wish?" he asked, "If you keep this up, you'll have your wish granted!"

Asajj flicked her tail. "Like you would! I _know_ you won't hurt me. How would you explain to Blackstar or Dooku once they find my body?" she threatened, "And you can threaten me as much as you like, it won't change a thing. I'm not afraid of a _barely functional droid!_"

Grievous cried angrily and charged into Asajj, making her fall to the ground. Before she even had time to react, Grievous got on top of her, sinking his front claws and teeth into her. He would have killed her if he didn't stop for a second. He suddenly remembered the way he saw himself kill the ShadowClan warriors. He had killed them just like this, savagely clawing them apart. He looked into Asajj's eyes. For the first time, he saw fear in them instead of the over confident, cold gaze that she had.

Grievous finally let her go and sat on the lake shore, staring into the lake, not saying a word. Asajj stood where she was, not making a sound. The two stayed silent for awhile until Asajj said, "Well... apparently you're stronger then I though… But I _can_ kill you if I wanted too!"

Grievous let out a little laugh. "Your competitive nature can be quite amusing sometimes," he said, "I would miss that if I had killed you."

Asajj hissed in reply. She then got up and sat beside the lake shore, a few inches away from Grievous.

"Why are you afraid of the water?" she asked curiously.

"That is none of your business," Grievous answered coldly. He turned to Asajj. "What do you want?"

"'Want?' You have nothing that I want! What could I possibly get from _you_?" Asajj snapped sounding offended, "I was just trying to have a conversation that's all!"

"To insult someone is not what people do when trying to have a conversation."

Asajj glared at Grievous for a moment, trying to find a comeback. But then she suddenly sighed heavily and said, "I don't know. I was just thinking about something."

"What exactly?"

Asajj stared at the sky. "Do you think someone has brought us here for some purpose?" she suddenly asked.

"Probably, how else could we have gotten here," Grievous answered, "Why do you ask?"

"No reason."

She continued to stare at the sky, as if saying a silent prayer or something. Grievous flicked his tail a little. Why was Asajj acting like this? What is she concern about?

"Are you all right, Asajj?" Grievous asked.

Asajj was about to reply when suddenly Flametail came out of the forest and said, "Grievous, Asajj! Blackstar would like to see you back in camp." Both Grievous and Asajj nodded and fallowed Flametail back into camp.

* * *

"Here they are, Blackstar," Flametail said as he brought Grievous and Asajj into the same clearing that they had met at before. Grievous saw that Blackstar, Rowanclaw, Littlecloud, and Dooku where there, as if preparing for a meeting.

_What's going on?_

"Thank you, Flametail," Blackstar said. Flametail nodded and sat next to Littlecloud.

Grievous sat down next to Dooku and asked, "What's going on?"

"You'll see," Dooku replied.

"So, what do you want to discuses, Dooku?" Blackstar asked uneasiness in his voice.

Dooku stood up, looked at each cat in the eye. "I wanted to discuses about the Jedi," he said, "Have you've heard or seen anything form them?"

"No," Rowanclaw answered, "There hasn't been a word about them from our border patrols."

"They must be hiding, plotting to take over your clan," Dooku said, "They should know by now that you're here. If you want to get rid of them, you must warn the other clans of their evil. The sooner they know the better chance of us defeating them quickly."

Blackstar's tail twitched a little. "And what if they have met up with the other clans?" he questioned.

"Then we must drive them out before they get the other clans completely brainwashed," Dooku answered.

"'Brainwashed?'" Littlecloud asked puzzled.

"It means being controlled. Being forced to do or believe in something," Dooku answered.

Blackstar was silent for a moment deep in thought. Finally he said, "We'll see. Let me think about it."

"Of course."

Dooku then walked backed to camp with Grievous and Asajj fallowing behind. As they walked, Asajj walked up to Dooku and asked, "Do we have to get ShadowClan involved in all of this?"

"Pardon?" Dooku looked at her like she had gone mad.

"I…I mean do we really need them to find the Jedi? Couldn't we just hunt them down and kill them on our own?"

Dooku stopped in front of her.

"We need as much allies as we can, Asajj! We can't afford the Jedi to get the upper hand!" Dooku said a little anger flashing in his eyes, "Plus, they know this land better than we do."

Asajj glared at him.

"Why do you care anyway?" Grievous asked suspiciously.

"Well…they have been nice to us with giving us shelter and all. I just thought why put them endanger with the Jedi and all," Asajj answered flicking her tail nervously.

She then went back to camp, leaving Dooku and Grievous behind. "Is there something wrong with her?" Dooku asked Grievous when Asajj was out of ear shot.

Grievous shook his head. "Not that I know of," he lied.

He knew Asajj was nervous about something with the way she acted like at the Lake, but he didn't want to tell Dooku. At least not until he knew what was wrong with her.

Dooku glared at him. "I'll take your word for it, but tell me if you find anything out."

Dooku then went back into the den. Grievous was about to fallow him when Blackstar came behind him and said, "I have decided what we'll do about the Jedi."

Grievous turned to him, his ears rising up in interest. "I have decided to warn the other clans about the Jedi," Blackstar said, "Tomorrow night, me and some of my warriors are going to meet with the other clans at what we call a Gathering. There I will tell them about the Jedi."

"Do you want us to go with you?" Grievous asked. He had been curious about the other clans, and would like to see what they were like.

Blackstar shook his head. "No, you Separatists will stay here. I'll tell you what happens after the Gathering." And with that Blackstar went inside his den.


	13. Friend Or Foe?

"Graystripe, Sandstorm, Hazeltail, Mousewhisker, Thornclaw, Dustpelt, Dovepaw, and Lionblaze; you eight will join me at the Gathering," Firestar called out.

Lionblaze went over to where Firestar was, who started to talk to Obi-Wan. "…I'm sure the other clans can handle them themselves," Lionblaze heard Obi-Wan say to Firestar, "But I want to warn them just in case."

Firestar nodded. "I understand," he said, "I will let them know."

"Thank you, Firestar."

Lionblaze walked up to Firestar after Obi-Wan was out of ear shot and asked, "What did Obi-Wan want?"

"Oh, he just asked me if I could warn the other clans of the Separatists. I told him I would tell them at the Gathering," Firestar answered.

"Is that really a good idea?" Dustpelt questioned, his dusty brown tail twitching.

"I agree," Thornclaw added, "I mean how will the other clans react?"

"Don't worry," Firestar said, "I'm just giving them a heads up, that's all."

Lionblaze shook his head. Was this really a good idea? What if the Separatists met up with the other clans? "And what if they met up with the other clans?" Dustpelt asked liked he was reading Lionblaze's mind, "What then, Firestar?"

Firestar glared at Dustpelt. "I know what I am doing, Dustpelt," he replied calmly.

Dustpelt muttered something under his breath, but didn't say it loud enough for Firestar to hear. Firestar then signal his group of warriors to go to the Gathering. As Lionblaze walked with the rest of the group he then felt a tail on his shoulder. He turned around to see Jayfeather behind him.

"What is it, Jayfeather?" Lionblaze asked as he and his brother walked.

"Do you _now_ see why the Jedi are a threat?" Jayfeather questioned.

Lionblaze sighed heavily. "Just because Obi-Wan asked Firestar to warn the other clans about the Separatists doesn't mean that where being taken over."

Jayfeather's tail twitched. "Are you sure? It sounded more like an order then a request!" he snapped.

"I think your overreacting, Jayfeather," Lionblaze replied.

Ever since they had their first argument about the Jedi, Jayfeather had been almost obsessed with convincing him that the Jedi are going to take over ThunderClan. It was really starting to get annoying. Jayfeather only glared Lionblaze as they continued to travel to the Gathering.

* * *

"Jayfeather, are you alright?" Flametail asked concerned.

Jayfeather turned to him. He was at the Gathering, sitting with the other medicine cats. He was nervous because it was now Firestar's turn to speak to the other clans about ThunderClan's progress. The other leaders had already spoken, and they sounded like they don't know about the Separatists…or the Jedi. He was worried how the other leaders will react and would they even believe Firestar in the first place?

"No, I'm fine," Jayfeather finally answered.

Flametail still gave him an uneasy look but didn't push the subject. He instead continued talk to the other medicine cats. Jayfeather looked back at where the leaders sat. RiverClan's leader, Mistystar and WindClan's leader, Onestar sat there calmly and patiently, but ShadowClan's leader looked a very uneasy. Blackstar's tail and ears would twitch every few minutes, and he looked as if he couldn't wait to leave.

_What's wrong with Blackstar? _Jayfeather thought.

He had address that ShadowClan was recovering from the battle with ThunderClan and that Rowanclaw was made deputy, but he didn't say anything that would be worth being jumpy about. But it didn't matter as Jayfeather saw Firestar get at the edge of the huge rock that the leaders sat at.

"ThunderClan is doing well," Firestar said, "Prey is running well and we too are recovering from the battle." Firestar gave Blackstar a look. Blackstar just flicked his ears, but didn't reply.

"Anyway," Firestar continued, "I wanted to address something to the clans."

Jayfeather's heart sank.

"What would that be, Firestar?" Mistystar asked.

"Well, a few moons ago, I found these rouges in my territory. They were from a clan, similar to ours called the Republic."

"'Republic?' What in StarClan's name is that?" Onestar asked puzzled.

"It is what they call their clan," Firestar explained, "The rouges are warriors from the Republic called Jedi."

Blackstar's eyes widened.

"They came all the way here from the Republic to warn us of these cats from another clan called the Separatists," Firestar said, "The Separatists are cats who have the ambition to become the most powerful clan ever. They are in a war with the Republic and they are having some trouble with them. So they had their most powerful warriors from the Separatists to come here and take over our clans while the Republic sent some Jedi to stop them."

"And how do we know this is true, Firestar?" Onestar questioned.

"Well…I-"

"Enough!" Blackstar interrupted loudly.

Every one gasped. No one interrupts a leader while they speak unless it was something very important. Jayfeather could smell fear from the ShadowClan cats and could sense Flametail and Littlecloud stiffen.

"What Firestar says is the truth," Blackstar said. "I…I have met the Separatist cats."

The warriors from ThunderClan, WindClan, and RiverClan gasped while the ShadowClan cats remain silent. Jayfeather sighed heavily. This is what he had feared.

"You have, Blackstar?" Mistystar asked.

Blackstar nodded. "Yes. A moon ago, we heard a cry down by the lake. I sent Rowanclaw to investigate, and he met up with the Separatists. Their leader told me about the Jedi and why they were in ShadowClan territory. They said that the _Jedi_ where the power hungry clan who wanted to take over our clans. I didn't know if they told the truth or not, so I kept an eye on them in my camp."

"They are trying to fool you, Blackstar," Firestar advised, "You cannot trust them."

"But what if they are right?" Blackstar questioned, "What if the Jedi are here take over us? I can't take that chance."

"I know, but you must get rid of them," Firestar said ignoring Blackstar's statement.

Blackstar let out a furious hiss. "Like you should talk! From the way you talked about the Jedi, it sounded like your best friends with them!"

Some mutters of agreement went through the clans including ThunderClan.

"I know I can trust them, Blackstar," Firestar replied, "I had a vision from their warrior ancestors."

Blackstar flicked his tail irritated.

"That doesn't mean anything!" he cried, "You need to get rid of them before it is too late!"

"Maybe you should do the same with the Separatists."

"I will as soon as _you_ get rid of the Jedi."

"But the Separatists need to go _first_."

Blackstar and Firestar continued to argue while the other clans discussed to issue.

"Who do you think is the power-hungry clan? The Republic or the Separatists?" a WindClan warrior asked.

"Who knows," a RiverClan warrior replied, "But I'm leaning towards the Separatists. I mean, if they really where a threat Blackstar would have done something by now."

"I don't know," another cat from WindClan put in, "I think we should trust the Jedi. Firestar has led the clans through many things before. I highly doubt he would help any evil cats."

More cats argue and talked until a Mistystar yelled, "_Silence!_"

All the cats became quiet, including Firestar and Blackstar. Mistystar sighed.

"That's quite enough," she said, "Where not going to handle the situation like this."

She turned her gaze to the medicine cats.

"I suggest that the medicine cats go visit the Moonpool tonight," Mistystar explained, "Then they come back and tell us what StarClan wants us to do."

Jayfeather's tail twitched. _Yeah, like StarClan can solve this insanity._

"I agree, let's do that," Firestar said. "Fine," Blackstar muttered.

"Then it is decided." Mistystar went down from her post and went over to the medicine cats. "You all agree?" she asked.

"Yes, of course. Mistystar," RiverClan's medicine cat apprentice, Willowshine said. WindClan medicine cat, Kestrelflight nodded while Littlecloud, Flametail, and Jayfeather sat in silence.

"Good, I wish you all luck, Gathering dismiss!"

* * *

Lionblaze couldn't believe what just happened. The Separatists where right next door to them and they didn't even notice!

_Of course ShadowClan kept it a secret_, Lionblaze thought bitterly, _they_ _would _love_ to see us get taken over after that battle._

He walked over towards Jayfeather, who was about to leave with the other medicine cats to go to the Moonpool, which was right outside WindClan territory. Jayfeather turned to Lionblaze as he heard him coming towards him.

"Still think the Jedi aren't a threat?" he asked bitterness in his voice.

Lionblaze said nothing as his brother left with the other medicine cats not waiting for an answer. Lionblaze sighed heavily and joined with his fellow clan mates. As they left the island, Dovepaw came up to Lionblaze and asked, "What do you think is going to happen now, Lionblaze?"

Lionblaze looked at Dovepaw. Her blue eyes were filled with worry and fear. He looked up at the stars. What will happen now? Who was the _real_ threat? Where the Jedi lying this whole time or are they telling the truth? Was Jayfeather right all along? Lionblaze looked back at Dovepaw, his amber eyes filled with uncertainty.

"I don't know, Dovepaw," he finally answered, "I don't know."


	14. Reunited

"Anakin, are you alright?" Obi-Wan asked as he entered the den.

Anakin looked up at his master. "I'm fine," he replied.

Anakin rested his head on his paws as he watched Firestar and his warriors get ready to go to the Gathering. Obi-Wan sat next to Anakin.

"What's troubling you?" he asked again.

Anakin sighed heavily as he said, "Do you really think that we should mention the Separatists to the other clans?"

"Yes, they need to know about them," Obi-Wan answered, "We can't let Grievous and Asajj have any allies."

"And what if the other clans have met them?" Anakin questioned, "We could be putting ThunderClan in danger letting the Separatists know where we are."

Obi-Wan stayed silent, thinking of a way to respond. He finally let out a long sigh and said softly, "It is a chance we have to take, Anakin. We have no other choice."

Anakin stared at his former master. What would the Separatists do once they find out where they were? Would they harm ThunderClan just to get to them? Anakin looked up to see Firestar and his warriors leave the camp.

_Maybe we don't have a choice…_

Anakin then step out of the den and walked towards the edge of camp.

"Where are you going?" Obi-Wan asked catching up to him.

"I'm going to take a quick walk," Anakin answered.

"Mind if I join you?" Obi-Wan said, "It would be nice to get out of camp for a little while."

Anakin nodded and the two Jedi walked into the forest.

* * *

"Asajj, have you've seen Grievous?" Dooku asked nervously.

Asajj opened her left eye waking up from her nap. "What did you say?" she asked sleepily.

Dooku sighed and started to pace a little outside of the den.

"I asked if you have seen Grievous," he repeated, "I haven't seen him for awhile now."

Asajj sat up a little as she replied, "I think he went out for a walk about an hour ago."

Dooku stopped in his tracks. "Why would he be out?" Dooku asked mostly to himself. He continued to pace and talk to himself, ignoring Asajj's presents.

Asajj watched Dooku carefully. Why was he so worried?

"Are you okay?" Asajj asked.

Dooku gave her a dark looked and hissed. "Quiet, I'm trying to think!" he growled.

Asajj unsheathed her claws. "Why are you yelling at me? What did I ever do to you?" she questioned furiously.

This was a question she wanted to ask for awhile now. A few days ago, Dooku had been extremely angry and snappish to her and Grievous. Asajj has tried to figure out what was wrong but she could never ask him directly since Dooku tried to stay away from her and Grievous as much as possible. Especially when no one else was around.

Dooku glared at her coldly as he slowly unsheathed his claws. Asajj flinched back a little. She could tell Dooku wouldn't be afraid to kill her here and now.

_Why is he acting this way?_

Dooku's neck fur rose as Asajj slowly moved away from him. He then hissed furiously and walked away, never looking back at Asajj. Asajj let out a deep sigh of relief once she saw the count leave the camp.

"What was that about, Asajj?"

Asajj turned her head to see Tawnypelt walking towards her.

"Uh, it's nothing," Asajj quickly explained, "Just Dooku being in a bad mood."

Tawnypelt gave her an uneasy look. "Are you sure?" she questioned, "Dooku looked like he was going to kill you there for a moment."

Asajj was silent for a moment. There was something _seriously_ wrong with Dooku. If not watched, he might become dangerous to the ShadowClan cats. And even to herself.

"Actually, there is," Asajj finally said.

Tawnypelt blinked in confusion. "Like what?"

Asajj ignored her question and walked towards the edge of camp. "I'm going to find Dooku, I'll be back soon," she called over her shoulder.

Tawnypelt said something else but Asajj didn't catch it. She had to find Dooku before he hurt someone or himself.

* * *

"Do you have any idea of where the Separatists cats are now?" Ivypaw asked Ahsoka as they walked near the ShadowClan border.

Ahsoka shrugged. "I don't know, they could be anywhere," she replied.

Ivypaw's eyes widen. "You mean they could in the territory right now?"

"Probably not," Ahsoka answered calmly, "We would have spotted them by now if they were."

As the two cats continued to walk and chat about the Separatists, Ahsoka felt a great disturbance in the force. She couldn't tell where it was coming from, but she could tell it was close by.

_Is someone invading ThunderClan?_

Suddenly, out of the corner of Ahsoka's eye, she saw a huge male silver cat standing on the ShadowClan border. He was on ShadowClan's side, his eyes staring straight at the steam was part of the border. Ahsoka's ears twitched. There was something about that cat that she did not like and it made her feel really uneasy.

_We have to get out of here._

"Who's that cat?" Ivypaw asked, mostly to herself, "I don't think I have ever seen him before at Gatherings."

"Maybe he is a rouge," Ahsoka suggested.

Ivypaw flicked her tail. "Then I should get rid of him!" she said as she step closer to the mysterious tom.

"Wait, Ivypaw!" Ahsoka exclaimed, "I don't think that's a good idea. Besides, he's on ShadowClan's territory, not ThunderClan's."

"So?" Ivypaw question, "He could still wonder over here. I say we make sure he _won't_ even dare make a move on our territory!"

"But Ivypaw…"

Ivypaw ignored Ahsoka's warning and continued walked towards the cat, her claws unsheathed.

"Hey, rouge!" she called out, "What are you doing here?"

The silver cat lifted up his head, his glowing yellow eyes showing no emotion. Ahsoka gasped fearfully. _Why is _he_ here?_

Grievous stared at Ivypaw. "I'm just taking a walk, nothing else," he said.

Ivypaw hissed. "Doesn't matter, you shouldn't be here! Leave now and I promise that I won't claw you to shreds!"

Grievous looked from her to Ahsoka. Ahsoka looked away from his gaze, hoping he wouldn't recognize her. Grievous only stared at her for a moment and then put his attention back onto Ivypaw.

"Are you a ThunderClan apprentice?" he asked.

"Yes," Ivypaw answered.

Grievous studied her for a moment before he finally replied, "Strange, you're not what I expected."

"What do you mean?"

"Imagined you ThunderClan cats to be more…impressive," Grievous explained.

"Why would you think-"

"Grievous, Grievous!" the voice of Asajj Ventress cried.

Ahsoka unsheathed her claws. _Oh God, not her too!_

Grievous turned around and saw Asajj running towards him. He stared at her as Asajj tried to catch her breath.

"Grievous," Asajj said panting, "Have you've seen Dooku anywhere?"

"No, why?" Grievous answered puzzled.

"Well, he-"

Asajj stopped in mid sentence and stared at the three ThunderClan cats. "Who are they?" she asked.

"ThunderClan cats," Grievous answered.

"Wait, your Grievous and Asajj?" the sliver and white cat asked.

"Yes and how do you know our names?" Asajj questioned.

The silver and white female cat hissed. "The Jedi told us all about you, fox hearts!" she cried, "We know why you are here and ThunderClan _will _stop you!"

"Ivypaw!" the dark orange and white female cried.

"Or really?" Asajj replied amusement in her voice.

Grievous stared at the dark orange and white cat. She looked from him to Asajj, fear in her blue eyes. She had strange white markings on her face, which Grievous hadn't seen on any cat before. Yet, they were faintly familiar. Grievous felt his neck fur rise and his claws unsheathe.

"Hello, Jedi," he said darkly.

Ahsoka flinched back.

"Well, that answered our question on where the Jedi our," Asajj commented mostly to herself.

Grievous walked closer towards Ahsoka, stepping over the ThunderClan border.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Ivypaw shouted.

She tried to fight him, but Grievous simply pushed her out of his way.

Once he was face to face with Ahsoka, he asked her coldly, "Where are your fellow Jedi, youngling?"

Ahsoka hissed. "None of your business!"

Grievous's tail twitched a little. "Alright, if you want to do things the hard way…"

He then jumped on top of her and put his right front paw on top of Ahsoka's neck. He put a little pressure on her neck, but not enough to kill. Ahsoka coughed and tried to break free from Grievous's grasp but he was too strong.

"Now will you tell me where Kenobi and Skywalker are?" Grievous asked lightly loosing the pressure.

Ahsoka gasped in reply.

Suddenly Grievous felt some charge into him, making him lose balance. He fell to the ground and saw Ivypaw guarding Ahsoka.

"I will not let you harm her, murder!" Ivypaw growled.

Grievous stood up. "I have no quarrel with you, apprentice," he said, "Now out of my way."

"No!"

Grievous stared at the ThunderClan apprentice for a moment as his claws scraped the ground. He knew he could easily kill her, but he didn't want to. It almost felt like as if he was killing one of the ShadowClan cats.

Grievous let out an annoyed hissed and was about to leave when he heard someone cry, "Ahsoka!"

Grievous then saw Anakin and Obi-Wan running towards Ahsoka and Ivypaw.

Obi-Wan quickly raced with Anakin towards Ahsoka and Ivypaw. Anakin stood right next to her calling her name while Obi-Wan went to Ivypaw and ordered, "Go back to camp, now!"

Ivypaw was about to protest, but then she nodded and ran towards ThunderClan camp. When she was gone, Obi-Wan turned to Grievous and said, "So, we meet up at last."

"It would seem so, Kenobi," Grievous replied, his claws sinking further into the ground.

"Yay, where finally reunited!" Asajj exclaimed sarcasm in her voice, "Oh what joy!"

Anakin hissed furiously at Asajj while she in replied with a flick of her tail.

"What have you two done to ShadowClan?" Obi-Wan asked unsheathing his claws incase Grievous or Asajj attacked him.

Grievous narrowed his eyes. "I could ask you the same question," he answered surprising calmly, "What did you Jedi scum do to ThunderClan?"

"How _dare_ you say that!"

Anakin was about to jump out at Grievous when suddenly an old gray male cat came into view. He looked from Asajj and Grievous then at Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Ahoska, who was finally able to get up.

He glared at Obi-Wan.

"Well, isn't this a pleasant surprise," the gray cat said coldly.

Obi-Wan's eyes widened. "_Dooku?_" he cried in shock.

Dooku nodded.

Anakin stood next to Obi-Wan as he muttered, "Great, another snake for us to deal with!"

"So you made allies with the ThunderClan cats, have you?" Dooku said ignoring Anakin's statement, "I should have known. You Jedi always have to be in the center of attention. Always needing someone to back you up, never by yourself."

Obi-Wan's neck fur raised a little as he replied calmly, "Like how you made allies with ShadowClan?"

Dooku flicked his tail. "That is different. We didn't meet them voluntarily."

"Enough talk!"

Anakin stood face to face with Dooku.

"It doesn't matter how you met up with the clans, you are still a threat to them!" Anakin exclaimed, "I won't let you harm them!"

"Okay, if we are a threat to them, how are you not?" Asajj question, "What makes you three any different from us?"

Anakin glared at her, trying to find a reply.

Obi-Wan stared at Asajj.

_I guess she has a point_, he thought, _but we are not the ones who are taking advantage of them._

"So that makes us the bad guys now?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Maybe," Asajj answered.

Then suddenly a huge bright white light flashed in Obi-Wan's eyes, making him temporarily blind. He tried to cry out to Anakin and Ahoska, but he couldn't use his voice, no matter how hard he tried. Soon, Obi-Wan was finally able to see again, but he was in a different location. He was in some kind of cave and there wasn't a trace of light anywhere, yet he could see. He saw Anakin, Ahsoka, Grievous, Asajj, and Dooku in the same place all looking confused. Obi-Wan saw Anakin try to yell something at Dooku but no words came out of his mouth.

_What's going on here, why can't I hear him?_

"Good question."

Obi-Wan turned around startled to see an old, hairless cat coming towards them. The cat glared at him, and then everyone else with cloudy amber eyes. Obi-Wan flinched a little but said nothing.

"About time you six meet up," the old cat rasped annoyed, "From the way you all lust for the other's blood, I would have thought you would have meet up sooner."

Grievous yelled at the old cat, looking as if he was ready to leap out at him and attack. But the old cat just glared at him and said, "There is no reason to get mad at me. I'm just stating the facts."

Grievous said something again, but the old cat ignored him.

He then cleared his throat and said, "Now before I get interrupted _again_, I will say that the reason why you all can't hear from one another other then yourself and me is because I need you to listen to me. But apparently that failed."

Grievous flicked his tail in annoyance but said nothing.

"Now, let me introduce myself," the old cat said, "My name is Rock. I watch over the clans and try to; I guess to protect them at all costs. I am part of the reason why you are here."

"Why did you bring us here?" Obi-Wan asked.

"I need you to help the clans. You see, the clans are about to get invade by these dark cats from this place called the Dark Forest. It is a place where evil spirits from the clans go when they die. They want revenge on the clans and they are defenseless to them. There are three cats in ThuderClan who are ready to fight them, but I am afraid that's not enough. I brought you here, Jedi, hoping that you would be able to help. I have heard many stories from your ancestors and thought you could be some use."

Rock then turned towards the Separatists, giving them dark looks.

"However, someone from the Dark Forest got the same idea as I did and brought you Separatists here. Now instead of bringing peace, _both_ of you are now bring destruction and terror with in ThunderClan and ShadowClan. Soon WindClan and RiverClan will join under your madness as well since they now know about you."

Obi-Wan saw Anakin say something, but Rock simply gave him a dark look.

He then continued, "If you even remotely care about the clans or your lives in general, I suggest you all learn to work together and put the past behind you. Otherwise you will only help bring the down fall of the clans. And yourselves as well."

"But how you expect us to do that?" Obi-Wan questioned, "The Separatists have done _so _much damage to the Jedi Order and the Republic it is unthinkable! How do you want us to forget something like that?"

Grievous and Anakin also said their opinion while Ahsoka, Asajj, and Dooku remained silent.

Rock sighed heavily. "Then enjoy the death and bloodshed. For only those who can put the past behind them will survive."

Another white light flashed in Obi-Wan's eyes again. He then found himself wakening up next to Anakin and Ahsoka back in ThunderClan territory. Obi-Wan stared at them, speechless to speak.

_Is he right? Are we bringing the down fall of the clans? But how can I put forget what the Separatists have done to save a clan that doesn't even affect me or the Republic?_

Obi-Wan sighed and glanced at Anakin and Ahsoka. He could tell that they were thinking the same thing. The three of them then walked in silence back to ThunderClan camp, wondering what they should do.

* * *

Dooku slowly opened his eyes as he thought angrily about what Rock had said. He couldn't work with the Jedi, nor will he ever! And all to save a clan of savages, not even worth the effort! Why should he waste his time for them when he could not gain anything in return?

But yet, he still needed to get back. He needed to get back to the Separatists and finally be in control again. But, how can he get back? Dooku suddenly felt the area around him get icy cold, as if a ghost was looming over him.

He then heard a soft female voice whisper, _"The only thing you can do is to destroy them. Bring the clans to war and I will take you back…"_

Dooku turned around quickly but there was no one around him.

Destroy the clans…yes. It must be the only way.

If he got rid of the force that brought him here, then he will be able to go back and be free from these cats, clans, and the vision. The vision of him being murdered by Asajj and Grievous still haunted him, making him so paranoid he couldn't sleep at night.

Dooku glanced at Grievous and Asajj, who where just now waking up. He then slowly got on his feet and walked towards ShadowClan camp.

_If this means I get out of this hell, then I'll do it. The clans _must _fall in I am to survive._

"Dooku, where are you going?" Asajj asked uneasiness in her voice.

Dooku quickly turned to Asajj, madness glowing from his brown eyes.

"War," he answered, "We're going to war."


	15. StarClan's Message

Flametail walked silently next to Littlecloud as they approached the Moonpool. Ever since the Gathering, all Flametail could think about was what Firestar had said. Had the Jedi 'brainwashed', as Dooku called it, Firestar and the rest of ThunderClan? What will they do now that they know where the enemy was?

_The Separatists are here to help us, right?_

Flametail had his doubts about the Separatists, but he trusted StarClan. They wouldn't bring anyone to ShadowClan if they were dangerous.

When the medicine cats arrived at the Moonpool, Flametail sat at the edge of it, right next to Littlecloud and Jayfeather. He put his nose next to the crystal blue water and closed his green eyes. He sat there, waiting for StarClan to send him a message. He then opened his eyes and found himself looking at a giant tree.

It was the biggest tree that Flametail had ever seen! It had four rocks in front of it, with four cats sitting on them. The one in the middle was an orange tom with piercing amber eyes, on his right a long furred black she-cat, and on his left a large silver gray tom and a skinny brown she-cat.

Flametail looked beside him to see Littlecloud, Jayfeather, Kestrelflight, and Willowshine. Flametail blinked at them. _Are we all having the same dream?_

"Greetings," the orange tom said.

"Hello," Littlecloud replied nervously.

The others followed his lead.

The four cats then jumped down from the rocks and walked towards the medicine cats.

"I can see you are confused as to who we are," said the orange cat, "My name is Thunderstar. Here is Shadowstar, Riverstar, and Windstar."

Thunderstar pointed to each cat with his tail as he introduced them. Flametail sat speechless. He was standing in front of the clans' founders! Before anyone could say anything, Shadowstar stepped in front of Thunderstar and said, "Now that the interdictions are done, we can discuss the most important matter here. The Jedi and the Separatists."

"Why are they here?" Jayfeather questioned coldly, "What is their purpose?"

"We...are not that sure," Windstar said her tail twitching, "But we do know that they have the fate of the clans in their paws."

"So what do we do? Are they anything like what Firestar and Blackstar said?" Kestrelflight asked his voice cracking.

All four of the leaders where silent for a moment.

"Yes and no," Riverstar finally said, "From where they come from, each side has its own evil within them. We are not sure which side can be trusted."

"It seems obvious to me," Jayfeather commented, "They _both_ need to leave. Can't you see they are tearing the clans apart?"

"We know that!" Shadowstar hissed, "But we can't just have them magically go away! They must do what they are distain to do here. They will either save our clans or..." Shadowstar sighed, not finishing her sentience.

But she didn't need to.

Flametail could already tell what she was trying to say. Either the Jedi and Separatists where going to help them. Or destroy them.

"So, what do we need to do?" Willowshine asked, "What can we do to help."

"You must keep cautious," Riverstar advised, "You can't completely trust them, but you will have to work with them. Stay strong and never doubt your clan mates for a minute."

Flametail looked at the other medicine cats. Everyone of them, including Jayfeather, had a tiny bit of fear in their gazes. Flametail turned back to the leaders.

"This is all the advice we can give you," Thunderstar said sadly, "Be strong and know that we will be watching over you."

A bright white flashed blinded Flametail as he found himself back at the Moonpool. He stood up, his thoughts filled worry. What are the Jedi and Separatists distain to do? He looked at the other medicine cats. Each one of them was to deep in thought. Flametail glanced over at Littlecloud, hoping his mentor would say something. But he said nothing has his light blue eyes where dull.

The medicine cats then left the Moonpool in silence, having nothing to discuses. When Flametail and Littlecloud entered back into ShadowClan territory and where alone, Flametail asked, "What are we going to tell Blackstar?"

Littlecloud sighed. "I'm not sure. But I'll think of something. Just leave all the talking to me."

Flametail nodded in reply.

When they got to ShadowClan camp, they saw that everyone was gathering at Highbranch, ShadowClan's meeting spot. Littlecloud and Flametail ran to where everyone was, their fur rising.

"What's going on?" Flametail asked Dawnpelt.

"Dooku had found out something about the Jedi," Dawnpelt explained quickly, "He is speaking right now."

Flametail looked up at Highbranch. Blackstar, as well as Dooku stood up there, looking down at the clan.

"Cats of ShadowClan," Dooku was saying, "Now that we know where the Jedi are, this is the time to take action." Dooku flicked his tail back and forth, his eyes darting from cat to cat, not really focusing on anything. "The only way to defeat the Jedi is to kill them. Either ThunderClan will surrender the Jedi to us or we will have to take them down by force."

"Are you saying we should go to war with ThunderClan?" Ratscar questioned.

"If it is the only way to get rid of the Jedi, then yes," Dooku answered.

Flametail gasped. There was no way ThunderClan would give up that easily! ShadowClan couldn't afford to get into another bloody battle like that again.

_We lost Russetfur last time_, Flametail thought, _Who could we lose this time? _

"Dooku," Blackstar interrupted, "We can't afford to go into another battle with ThunderClan. We're still recovering from the last one."

Dooku turned to Blackstar. "I know, but we have no choice. I can help your clan prepare to fight the Jedi though. Give me and my companions a few sunrises and your warriors will be invincible!"

Blackstar turned his gaze to Rowanclaw, who was sitting right below him. His eyes where emotionless, as if telling Blackstar that he was on his own. Flametail looked over at the other warriors. Each one of their expressions where unreadable. Flametail wanted to go up there and stop all this, though he doubt he could change anything.

Blackstar glared at Dooku. "What kind of training would you do?" he questioned.

"Battle training," Dooku answered, "I would teach all of you how to fight swiftly and quickly. No harm will be done."

Blackstar was silent for a moment. He then sighed heavily, as if making a silent prayer to StarClan. Flametail's ears twitched.

_No, he's not really thinking… _

"If this will keep my clan safe from the Jedi, then I accept your offer."

Blackstar's eyes darken as he said, "However, my warriors don't need to kill to win battles."

Dooku nodded. "Of coarse."

He turned to the clan. "I will start battle preparations at sunrise. Grievous, Asajj, and I will select a few of you to start training with us. Be ready when we call you."

Dooku then jumped of Highbranch with Blackstar right behind him. Dooku left the camp and walked towards the training grounds for the ShadowClan apprentices while Blackstar entered his den. Flametail noticed the Littlecloud went after him. Maybe he could talk Blackstar out of this.

The rest of the clan went back to their normal duties, while they discussed about ThunderClan battle training. Fear, excitement, and uneasiness filled their voices.

Flametail searched for Asajj and Grievous. Maybe if he talked to them, they could change Dooku's mind. He found them near the camp entrance. Flametail raced towards them. Once he caught their attention, he said, "Is this really the only way to get rid of the Jedi? There isn't another way?"

Both Asajj and Grievous stared at Flametail, their expression emotionless.

"From my experience with Jedi, yes," Grievous finally answered, "The only way to get rid of them is to kill them."

Asajj gave Grievous a cold look before she said, "I agree, although I don't think going to war with ThunderClan is the way to solve this. Nor is killing the Jedi."

Flametail could tell there was tension between the two, but he didn't question it.

"Could you persuade Dooku to change his mind?" he asked, "You guys could reason with him, right?"

Asajj flicked her tail. "No, I've already tried that. He won't listen to anyone now."

"But-"

"There isn't anything we can do, Flametail. We just have to hope for the best. Hopefully things will go well in the end."

Asajj's eyes where full of defeat, which made Flametail confused.

"What are you talking about?" he questioned.

Asajj was sounding like she messed up so badly that there was no turning back. He turned to Grievous but his face was just as cold as stone.

"There must be something you can do," Flametail said, "You can't just give up…"

"Like what?" Frustration flowed through Asajj's voice.

Flametail sighed. "I don't know. But you two can't be this powerless. I can feel it."

Flametail then turned away, not even waiting for Asajj or Grievous to reply. He went into the medicine cat's den and started to go through ShadowClan's supply of herbs. He knew that ShadowClan will need it.


	16. Making a Choice

"More aggression!" Hawkfrost screamed at the top of his lungs, "Ahsoka, what are you doing?"

Ahsoka looked up at Hawkfrost as she let Ivypaw escape her grip. She glared at him, her blue eyes filled with anger.

"Letting her go," she answered coldly.

Hawkfrost hissed furiously. "Don't you understand that you will _never_ win a battle like that? You need to kill in order to fully win!"

Ahsoka said nothing in reply. For the few nights she had been training with Hawkfrost and Ivypaw, she had been getting on Hawkfrost's bad side. Every time she had Ivypaw cornered, she would always let her go unharmed, just like any true Jedi would. But Hawkfrost would always yell and say that Ahsoka was failing, when in truth, she was getting stronger. Ahsoka would ignore him, but she seemed to push him to his limit.

The two of them glared at each other, waiting for the other to make a move. Ivypaw stood where she was, not even bothering to solve the problem. After a moment of staring each other down, Hawkfrost took his icy blue gaze away from Ahsoka and started to mumble to himself. Ahsoka's ears twitched as she was not quite sure what Hawkfrost will do next. Hawkfrost then turned his attention back to Ahsoka and Ivypaw.

"Where done training for tonight," he said, "You are free to go, Ivypaw. Although, I want you to stay, Ahsoka."

He gave Ahsoka a dark look when he said the last sentence.

Ivypaw turned to Ahsoka, her eyes filled with concern. Ahsoka mouthed out "I will be fine. I'll see you later." Ivypaw nodded and walked away into the never ending darkness of the Dark Forest. Ahsoka turned back to Hawkfrost, who was approaching her quickly. He then suddenly slapped Ahsoka's face, leaving a faint trail of blood. Ahsoka flinched back a little, but she never took her eyes off Hawkfrost.

"Maybe _that_ will teach you some respect," Hawfrost hissed coldly.

Ahsoka said nothing. She didn't want to make things worse for herself.

"Now," Hawkfrost said, "You seem to be refusing to 'fight' any cat I put you against. Including myself. So, I will try a different approach with you."

"What do you mean by that?" Ahsoka questioned her neck fur rising.

Hawkfrost smirked. "You will see. What I want you to do is stay where you are. Don't move a single mouse length or there will be some...consequences. Be ready for anything."

Hawkfrost then left Ahsoka, his dark fur blinding in with the shadows of the forest. Ahsoka stayed where she was, her claws unsheathed.

She had to be ready for whatever Hawkfrost was putting her against. She wondered what he had planned. Was she going to fight another Dark Forest member? She had only seen Tigerstar, Hawkfrost, and that one cat she fought when she first came here. Though she could tell there are more of them.

Much more.

And then a twig snapped.

Ahsoka stood up, her fur on its ends and eyes wide. She walked slowly towards the sound. Was that Hawkfrost? Ahsoka growled at the thought of that blind battle-hungry cat trying to scare her. Probably for his own amusement.

Ahsoka found the broken twig, that was obviously stepped on. Ahsoka looked around the area. No signs of any cat. Suddenly a flash of silver pelt caught in Ahsoka's eye. She then found herself on the ground, her side hurting like mad. She quickly got up but something attacked her and threw her to the ground again.

Ahsoka got and ran in a circle around a group of trees, hoping to see her attacker. After running a bit, she saw Grievous hiding in the shadows, ready to strike. Before Ahsoka could make a move, Grievous leaped out and got a hold of Ahsoka's leg. Ahsoka kicked Grievous and hit his face. Blood got into Grievous's eye as he tried to get the blood out his eye and face.

Ahsoka ran away from him, limping a little as her leg felt strained. She ran to a nearby tree and tried to climb it. If she could jump of the tree and land on top of Grievous, she would be able to immobilize him, giving her the chance to attack him. Grievous seemed to recover faster then she thought as he then charged at Ahsoka, who was barely up the tree.

Grievous then launched himself into the air and landed on top of Ahsoka's back. Ahsoka's claws buried themselves deep within the tree trunk, trying to hold on for dear life. But Grievous still had a grip on her as he fell slowly to the ground. His claws slicing through her dark orange fur. Ahsoka could feel her skin rip like she was being cut open with a knife. When she could no longer take the pain, Ahsoka screamed in agony and let go of the tree as she and Grievous fell straight to the ground.

* * *

Asajj paced back and forth, her thoughts filled with uncertainty. Shadowstar watched her closely, waiting for a response. Asajj suddenly hissed and hit the ground with her front paw.

"You can't be serious!" she exclaimed, "Do you have any idea what this means?"

"I do," Shadowstar replied, "But it is the only way, Asajj, and you know it. If either of the clans or you survive, you separate six must become one."

Asajj continued to pace. "Alright, I got that. But _if_ I did want to work with the Jedi, how would I convince Dooku and Grievous to agree? Dooku has gone mad and Grievous would rather die than work with those Jedi scum!"

"I know." Shadowstar flicked her tail, but her green eyes remained calm. "But doing nothing at all only makes you weak."

"What?"

Asajj jumped on top of Shadowstar, her claws aiming for her neck.

"How _dare_ you call me weak!" Asajj cried furiously.

Shadowstar pushed Asajj off of her.

"And yet it is true," she said with a grunt, "If you where truly strong, you would continue fight. You've stepped up to hundreds of Jedi, fought in many battles, killed without a second thought, and yet you can't stand up to your superiors and work with your enemies to save the lives of many? Not even to save yourself?"

Asajj stared at Shadowstar, unable to reply. Shadowstar glared at her.

"You where brought here for a purpose. And it is either to survive or die. What you do, is your choice." She let out a long sigh. "I just hope you choose the right one."

Silence filled the air. Asajj felt so much anger that she wanted to claw Shadowstar's face off! Yet, she felt angry with herself. Asajj didn't want to admit it, but she was scared. What Rock had said about her and the Separatists had truly disturbed her. 

_"Someone from the Dark Forest got the same idea as I did and brought you Separatists here. Now instead of bringing peace, _both_ of you are now bring destruction and terror with in ThunderClan and ShadowClan. Soon WindClan and RiverClan will join under your madness as well since they now know about you."_

And what Flametail had said didn't help much either. 

_"There must be something you can do. You can't just give up… You two can't be this powerless. I can feel it."_

Asajj felt her claws sink into the ground.

"And now you must make your choice."

Asajj glanced up at Shadowstar.

"The Jedi Ahsoka and Grievous are fighting now in the Dark Forest," Shadowstar explained, "If you want to help the clans, stop the fight. Or do nothing at all."

* * *

Ahsoka breathed heavily as she tried to get up. She was losing a lot of blood, and she knew she wouldn't last much longer against Grievous. Once she was on her feet, Ahsoka tried to run away. But she felt her paws grow heavy and fell back down. Ahsoka cringed at the pain that flowed through her body. She could no longer feel her back and her vision was cloudy while she felt incredibly dizzy.

She sense Grievous approaching her, and used all her energy to push him back with the force. But it didn't work as Ahsoka felt Grievous put his paw on her neck. He stared at her, his yellow eyes lusting for blood. Ahsoka didn't dare make a move. Grievous's claws tickled her throat as he got ready to make a killing blow. Ahsoka panicked and tried to escape. Grievous smirked at her fear as he was ready to make the final move.

"Grievous, stop!"

Before Grievous could do anything, Ahsoka saw him look over his shoulder and have a cat charge into him. Ahsoka gasped and tried to get up. But she felt the dizziness in her head, making her unable to see strait. She then fell back to the ground, closing her eyes tightly.

* * *

"What the hell, Asajj!" Grievous hissed as he finally got his balance back.

Asajj stared at him, her light blue eyes filled with...fear?

"You can't kill her," Asajj finally said, "We need her alive."

"Alive, are you mad?" Grievous charged at Asajj, trying to hit her with all his might. But Asajj backed away faster than he could reach her, not even bothering to attack him herself. Grievous stopped, as he felt himself grow tired. The battle with Ahsoka drained a lot of his energy, though he wouldn't show it. Especially in front of Asajj.

Asajj backed away from him still. "You and I both know that killing the Jedi won't solve anything," she said, "You heard what Rock had said. We need to work together."

"I'd rather suffer then team up with _them_!" Grievous shouted enraged, "I don't care what happens to the clans, I won't work with a Jedi as long as I shall live!"

"Do you really mean that?"

Asajj stepped closer to him. "Would you really let these cats die for something that isn't their fault?"

Grievous stared at Asajj. True, he didn't want to have anything bad happen to ShadowClan and the rest of the clans. He had become quite fond of them as they were the only people treated him as a person. But he couldn't work with a Jedi.

"So your saying we should forget everything the Jedi have done and pretend we're allies? Do you believe that I can just-"

"I understand that," Asajj interrupted, "I have my own grudges to deal with. But I rather not die in the process. Or have the clans destroyed because of it. We were transformed and put here for a purpose, for we either help the destruction or the survival of the clans. There is no other way around it, even if we try to deny it. I am choosing to help the clans."

She unsheathed her claws.

"And I will do whatever I can to make sure their safe. So, Grievous, are you my ally or are you my enemy?"

Grievous prepared himself for an attack, knowing that Asajj would rather kill him then work with him as an equal, just like in the Separatists.

But she didn't move.

She just stood there, waiting for him to make his choice. Grievous thought hard for a while. He thought about the vision of him killing the cats of ShadowClan. He remembered how monstrous he was, how savage he fought... Would he end up killing them if he didn't side with the Jedi? Grievous looked into Asajj's eyes. To his surprise, she really meant what she had said. She is willing to forget her other life's grudges to help these cats.

Grievous's neck fur rose. "...I won't let the clans die if I can help it."

Asajj relaxed a little.

"Although," Grievous added darkly, "I will try to kill the Jedi once if I have the chance. Just remember that."

Asajj nodded. "Fine. But at least you're as not completely blind as Dooku," she said.

"Speaking of Dooku, what do you plan on doing with him?" Grievous questioned unexpectedly.

Asajj flicked her tail as she avoided Grievous's gaze. "I...don't know. We'll think of something. Right?"

"Yes, but for now we keep an eye on him. Until we know what he is capable of, he is dangerous to every cat in ShadowClan. In the meantime, we will come up with some kind of plan, alright?"

Asajj nodded respectfully. "Okay."

* * *

"Ahsoka, wake up!"

Ahsoka quickly opened her eyes to see Anakin looking down on her. She was in the medicine cat's den as she could see Jayfeather and Briarlight carry herbs in their mouths.

"What happened?" Ahsoka asked horsed.

"You where bleeding all over the den when I woke up a few minutes ago," Anakin answered, "Me and Obi-Wan took you to the medicine cat's den at once. Jayfeather and Briarlight have been tending to your wounds for awhile now."

"You've lost a lot of blood," Jayfeather reported cutting Anakin off, "And you will have some pretty nasty scars, but you will be fine, surprisingly. Though, how did you get these wounds?"

Jayfeather ran his tail across Ahsoka's back, where the cuts from Grievous had left. Ahsoka shivered, as she could feel her back being torn open like it was happing all over again.

"How did you get it?" Jayfeather asked a more little force in his voice.

"Can't you see she is in shock?" Anakin demanded, "She can answer when she is ready to!"

Jayfeather flicked his tail. "But cats don't get injuries like this on a regular bases. I need to know as soon as possible what happened to her, regardless if she wants to or not."

"Why you-"

"Anakin, you're not helping," Briarlight cried stepping between him and Jayfeather. "If you want to help Ahsoka, let me and Jayfeather handle it. I promise she will be fine."

Anakin glared from Briarlight to Jayfeather, as if wondering if he should trust them. He then glanced back at Ahsoka. "If you need me, I'll be here, Snips," he said softly.

Ahsoka smiled slightly. "Thanks," she replied.

Anakin smiled and reluctantly walked out of the medicine cat's den. Ahsoka gave Briarlight a thankful looked, as she didn't want to answer any questions. She was, as Jayfeather had been, surprised that she was even alive. She really had thought that she was going to die at the paws of Grievous. She heard Jayfeather say something to her, but Ahsoka didn't listen. She was already slipping in a peaceful sleep.

* * *

Dooku's eyes flashed wildly as he hunted for the mysterious cat. When he arrived at the Dark Forest, he met up with the cat who had talked to him after the conversation with Rock. She wouldn't tell him her name, but the orange and white cat said that she wanted to test him. Dooku did not understand what she meant by that, but he knew he was going to fight her.

He had been searching for her for a long while now, pacing around the area as he could sense she was nearby. She was testing his patience, waiting for him to strike at her first. But Dooku had more patience then she realized. It was like when he first trained with Darth Sidious. If he learned anything from being a Sith Lord, it was waiting for the opportunities to come to him.

Dooku stopped all movement as he heard paw steps coming closer towards him. She was nearby and was preparing to attack. Dooku unsheathed his claws while he waited for the right moment. Suddenly, the mysterious orange and white cat leaped out at Dooku. But Dooku dogged out of her way and used the force to push her into a nearby tree. She hit the tree hard, shaking a little as she got up. Dooku used the force again and again, leaving her no time to recover.

The cat hissed in pain, though she was stronger then she looked. After being flung from a tree, she kicked off the tree with her high legs. She used the force that Dooku was trying to hold her in to her advantage, making her fly at an incredible speed. Dooku had no time to react when she landed on top of him and hold him down to the ground. Her claws cut through Dooku's skin, staining his fur with his own blood. Although, he did not try to fight back as he did not have the physical strength to. He then closed his eyes, letting his mind fill with anger as he used the force to get her off of him. Once she was off the ground, Dooku threw her, giving him time to stand.

But before he could make another move, he heard the cat scream, "Enough!"

She then got up and walked towards Dooku, limping a little as her orange and white fur was stained in blood.

"You are very powerful with the force," the cat said panting a little, "However, you are not going to last long with one on one combat. If you are going to lead the clans to their demise, you need to be prepared for anything."

Dooku's tail twitched. "Who said I would be fighting?" he questioned, "I have Grievous and Asajj to do that."

"You really think that they are that naive?" the cat said a little irritation in her voice, "They won't bring the clans to war if they can help it."

"Nor would they ever work with the Jedi," Dooku said, "They will help bring the fall of the clans by doing nothing. And the Jedi are in ThunderClan, so they would fight just to kill them, leaving the ShadowClan warriors to deal with the ThunderClan cats."

The orange and white cat's whiskers twitched. "That is true, though if you want to go back to the Separatists, you _will _fight in the battles, understand?"

Dooku hesitated for a moment and then nodded his head. The cat smiled with satisfaction.

"Good. I will contact you tomorrow night to discus the plan. Don't decide _anything_ until I have approved it."

"Of course," Dooku replied though he clearly showed he didn't like to take orders.

"One more thing before you go," the cat said, "I do want you to keep a close eye on Grievous and Asajj. Though they are blind by their lust for blood, they can't be fully trusted."

Visions of him being murdered by Asajj and Grievous played in Dooku's head, causing him to shake. The cat noticed this and then started to walk away, knowing he understood.

But before she could leave, Dooku ran up to her and asked, "You said after tonight's training you would tell me who you are."

The cat stopped walking. "Yes, I forgot about that."

She turned to him, her green eyes gleaming with evil and darkness.

"My name is Mapleshade, the _true_ ruler of the Dark Forest."


	17. Disappearance

Anakin quickly walked around ThunderClan territory. He felt very uneasy about Ahsoka and leaving her alone with Jayfeather. He didn't know why, but there was something about Jayfeather that he didn't like. He was always watching him, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka, like he was expecting something to happen. But even with mistrusting him, Anakin didn't have a choice. He was a healer, he could help Ahsoka.

In fact, Anakin feared that Ahsoka would lose her life. But thank God that he smelt the blood so quickly as he did.

As Anakin wonder the forest, he noticed that the ground he walking on was becoming less soiled. Anakin stopped all movement as he felt himself sink into the ground. He took a step back and the ground under his back foot collapsed. Anakin tried to pull his leg out but that only made things worse. His struggling ended up making the hole bigger, letting his entire body get swallowed by the ground.

"Help, I'm falling!" Anakin cried desperately.

But nobody answered.

Finally, he fell down the hole. Anakin landed on his head and was knocked out completely cold.

* * *

Asajj and Ferretpaw circled each other slowly, waiting for the other to strike. It was the first session of Dooku's battle training, and things were going surprisingly well, at least to Asajj. Her first lesson was to Ferretpaw, an apprentice who looked like he never been in _any_ sort of fight before. But the cream and gray cat proved her wrong by having excellent agility. He had dogged almost all of her attacks, and even at times getting good hits at her as well.

Asajj then let out an angry hiss and launch herself at Ferretpaw. Ferretpaw quickly moved out of the way, making Asajj hit the ground face first. Asajj coughed a bit, having a bit of dirt get in her mouth. She slowly got up and when she did, she pounced on top of Ferretpaw, who didn't move. She held him down.

"If you see your opponent down," Asajj advised, "You need to attack without mercy. Never letting them have time to react."

Ferretpaw nodded and then slashed his paw across Asajj's muzzle. She flinched back and Ferretpaw continued to attack.

"Good. Use your anger and frustration to power your attacks," Asajj said.

Ferretpaw's movements became faster and more energetic. He then jumped on top of Asajj, his paw right against his throat. Ferretpaw looked into Asajj's eyes, waiting to see if he should continue or not.

"We are done for now," Asajj finally said with a grunt.

Ferretpaw nodded and let Asajj get up.

"You did very good," she said, "With a bit more training, I'm sure you will be a good opponent against the Jedi."

"Thanks, Asajj," Ferretpaw said proudly, "Though, I will admit your tactics are a bit strange."

"You've only seen the beginning of it."

Ferretpaw smiled and then walked towards camp. When he was gone, Asajj looked around to see if Grievous or Dooku where done training yet. She then saw Grievous and Ratscar roll around on the ground, each determined to take the other one down. Both of them had scratches on their fur, making Asajj feel uneasy. Grievous then put himself on top of Ratscar, his weight crushing him a bit. When Ratscar began to cough a bit out of suffocation, Grievous let him go.

"We are done for today. Practice your defense a little bit more though. Otherwise, you are ready to fight a Jedi," Grievous said.

Ratscar licked his wounds. "I'll look into it. See you later, Grievous."

He then left and Grievous approached Asajj. Asajj's tail twitched a bit.

"I thought we weren't allowed to 'harm' the ShadowClan cats?" she questioned.

"We're not," Grievous replied, "But Ratscar wanted a challenge, so I gave him one." His eyes darken. "I noticed he had similar battle strategies like the ones we learned from Tigerstar. I believe he is training in the Dark Forest."

"Do you think he is a threat?" Asajj asked.

"I don't think we have to worry about him, though we shouldn't let our guard down. You can never be sure," Grievous answered.

"That's good." Asajj's gaze lighten up a bit. "Though, I will agree what Dooku had said. You do worry too much."

Grievous flicked his tail, though Asajj couldn't tell if he was amused or offended.

"Really? Do you think they can't harm us? That they are, as Dooku put it, 'mindless and savage?'" Grievous asked.

"I didn't say that. But you sounded like you're expecting to be attack by the kits or something. Which would be hilarious might I add."

Grievous rolled his eyes.

Asajj laughed a little. She never felt this comfortable around anyone in a long time. Though she didn't trust Grievous completely, he wasn't as bad as she thought he was. In fact, he was a lot like her.

"Why do we never talk like this back in the Separatists?" Asajj asked suddenly, "It seems kind of odd that we have worked together for awhile, and yet not had the time to get to know each other."

"It is because of competition," Grievous answered bluntly, "Too busy trying to prove which one of us is better."

"I know that!"

"Then why are you asking this question?"

"Well, I-"

_"Help, I'm falling!"_

Both Asajj and Grievous ears straighten.

"Did you hear that?" Asajj asked.

"I did," Grievous answered. His fur rose a little. "Where is Dooku?"

"I don't know. Though it sounded like it came from ThunderClan territory." Asajj turned to Grievous. "I'll go check it out. You go back to ShadowClan camp in case something happens."

As she was about to leave, Asajj put her tail under Grievous's chin.

"Take care of yourself," she said softly.

Grievous blinked in confusion as Asajj ran towards the sound not looking back at him.

* * *

Anakin groaned a little as he slowly opened his eyes. His head felt like it was vibrating and the faint sunlight he could see hurt his eyes. He was in some kind of cave, where there was no light except from the hole where he fell in. Anakin looked back up and saw that there was no way he could climb back up.

His heart started to race as he thought about the dream he had. He remembered he met Fallen Leaves and the black female cat in cave, just like this one. He never thought much about it until now, but he was now getting worried.

_Calm down, Anakin_, he said to himself, _You can do this. Just stay calm._

Out of no other option, Anakin then began to wonder the cave, hoping to find an exist. He left some claw marks on the walls and nearby rocks, in case he needed to come back or if someone found their way down here, they could find his trail. He walked what seemed like forever, not really getting anywhere. Suddenly, Anakin could hear a river.

Blindly, he ran towards the sound. He ran until the ground beneath him became wet. Anakin slowed down, breathing heavily. Everything was playing out like in his dream. The only thing that was missing was...

"Hey, are you alright?"

Anakin froze.

A lone cat walked towards him, though it was so dark that Anakin couldn't make anything out. But he would recognize that voice anywhere.

"Fallen Leaves?" Anakin asked.

"Uh, yes," Fallen Leaves replied shocked, "How do you know my-"

"I don't have time to explain," Anakin interrupted, "I need to get out of here and fast. Do you know any way out of this place?"

"I do, but-"

"Please!"

Anakin stared at Fallen Leaves, hoping that he would help. After a moment of silence, Fallen Leaves let out a heavy sigh.

"If you insist. Follow me."

Anakin followed Fallen Leaves through the tunnel. As they walked, Anakin wondered if the other cat was here as well.

"Is there anyone else here, besides you?" he suddenly asked.

Fallen Leaves turned to Anakin. "There is a she-cat who lives down here."

"Dose she have black fur and green eyes?"

"She dose. Do you know her?"

Anakin stayed silent for a moment. He didn't know if he should look for her. What if he got trapped here again?

_But she could help us out with the Separatists..._

"Can you take me to her?" Anakin finally said.

"But didn't you want to leave right away?" Fallen Leaves questioned though some hopefulness was in his voice.

"After I talk to her, if you don't mind."

Fallen Leaves smiled. "It's nothing. I'll show you to her den. Hopefully, she is there right now."

Fallen Leaves then turned around and headed down the river with Anakin at his side.

* * *

"Have you seen Anakin anywhere, Spiderleg?" Obi-Wan asked as he approached the dawn patrol.

Spiderleg glared at him. "I haven't seen him since yesterday. Why?"

"He left camp before sunrise," Obi-Wan explained, "I haven't heard him since. Thought you might have seen or talked to him."

"Well, I didn't. Nor do I plan to look for him." Spiderleg quickly walked passed Obi-Wan, ignoring his confused gaze.

Obi-Wan flicked his tail and then walked towards Firestar's den. When he arrived, Firestar was coming out of the den.

"Firestar," Obi-Wan said, "Have you seen Anakin?"

"I have not," Firestar answered concern in his voice.

Obi-Wan sighed. Where could he be? Why would he be out this long.

_Could he met up with the Separatists or a member of the Dark Forest?_

Firestar had told him and Anakin about the Dark Forest members able to contact with the living, as they visited Ahsoka. Could they have gotten to Anakin as well?

"I'm going to go after him," Obi-Wan finally said, "If I'm not back by sunhigh, come find me."

Firestar nodded in reply.

Obi-Wan then ran into the forest, heading towards the ShadowClan boarder.

"Anakin!" Obi-Wan called out, "_Anakin!_"

But no answer came. When he arrived at the border, his movement became slower and quieter. If any ShadowClan warriors or the Separatists where nearby, he didn't want to let them know he was here. Obi-Wan hid in the shadows, calling out for Anakin's name ever so often. After a few minutes of silence and stillness, Obi-Wan heard some footsteps and saw a shadow moving in the distance.

Obi-Wan slowly walked closer to it, in case it wasn't Anakin. He kept his eyes on the moving figure, watching its every movement. And then the figure came out of the shadows.

Asajj looked around the area, her tail twitching like mad. She stepped over the border.

"And where do you think you're going?"

Asajj stopped dead in her tracks.

She looked at Obi-Wan, who was now revealing himself. Asajj glared at him.

"Why would you like to know?"

"You are on ThunderClan's territory," Obi-Wan replied coolly.

"So what?" Asajj hissed, "I'm not a clan cat. It shouldn't matter who's territory I'm on!"

"Then you shouldn't be on the clans' land at all." Obi-Wan sunk his claws into the ground. "Why are you here?" he asked.

Asajj hissed. "That is none of your business!"

"I believe it is," Obi-Wan said, "Your infiltrating ThunderClan territory. I have the right to know."

"What do you care about these cats? You are not_ even_ ThunderClan!"

Obi-Wan stepped across the border.

Asajj jumps on top of him. She glared down at him, sinking her claws into his back.

"And _you_ are not even _ShadowClan_, so why do _you_ care about them?" Obi-Wan mocked amusement in his voice.

Asajj growled, her claws going deeper into Obi-Wan's flesh. Pain went through Obi-Wan's body, yet he did not show it.

"So, are you going let me get up or something?" Obi-Wan finally said.

Asajj hissed again, but she let him out of her grip. Obi-Wan sat up and saw Asajj walking further into ThunderClan territory. He caught up to her and blocked her path.

"I didn't say you can wonder ThunderClan territory at your own free will. Now tell me what is going on," Obi-Wan ordered.

Asajj flicked her tail. "Well, if you must know, there was a cry for help around here earlier. I came here to check it out."

"How long ago?"

"About ten to sixteen minutes."

Obi-Wan glared at her. "Do you mind if I go with you?"

Asajj looked like she was ready to protest. But instead, she glared at him and said, "I suppose. Just stay out of my way."

"Same goes for me." Obi-Wan pointed his head in the direction Asajj was heading. "After you, my dear."

Asajj flicked her tail but lead the way as Obi-Wan walked next her.


	18. The Holly and Empty Threat

"Do you know anything about this cat, Fallen Leaves?" Anakin asked.

"Not much," Fallen Leaves answered. "She only comes here at night and rarely speaks to me. I don't know where she came from, but it is nice to have a little company for once."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you see, I can't leave the tunnels."

Anakin stared at Fallen Leaves. He knew how to get out of here, yet he can't leave. That doesn't make any sense.

Unless…

"You're a ghost, aren't you?" Anakin muttered out loud.

Fallen Leaves turned to him, his amber eyes filled with denial. "I will never believe that! I can't be dead! I just…" He stopped talking, but continue to lead Anakin to the black cat's nest.

Anakin didn't say anything after that. He felt great sympathy for Fallen Leaves, but it did make him weary. Could…he end up like Fallen Leaves? Was he already dead and was the mysterious cat a spirit too?

No, she wasn't. That Anakin was assured of.

After a few minutes of endless, silent walking, Fallen Leaves stopped at the entrance of a tunnel.

"Wait here," Fallen Leaves ordered. "She doesn't like strangers that much. I'll see if she is here first."

"Okay," Anakin replied.

Fallen Leaves entered the tunnel, his eyes darting back at Anakin to make sure he wasn't going anywhere. Anakin sat down, feeling the cold, wet ground under his paws. He sighed heavily. He hoped that she was willing to talk. From the way Fallen Leaves talked about her, she would seem like a great ally.

Or foe.

A minute passed before Fallen Leaves returned. "You're not from the clans, are you?" he suddenly asked.

"What, why?" Anakin questioned suspiciously.

"I don't know," Fallen Leaves answered innocently. "She just said that she didn't want to talk to a clan cat. I honestly don't know who they are, really. So, are you one of them?"

Anakin paused for a moment before he said, "I'm not."

Fallen Leaves nodded and let him pass him. The two of them entered the tunnel, the scent of the forest becoming a little stronger. Anakin felt himself calm down a little until they saw a black female cat laying down in a moss nest. Her shinning green eyes where glaring at Anakin with suspicion.

"You smell of ThunderClan," the black cat stated.

"I've been in ThunderClan, but I am not one of them," Anakin replied. "Is it a big deal if I was?"

"Yes. You see, I have a…_problem_ with ThunderClan," she answered truthfully. "But it isn't any of your business, so don't bother asking." Her tail flicked. "I see you met Fallen Leaves. That, is _interesting_."

Anakin could tell that she was meant seeing Fallen Leaves's ghost, but not daring to say it in front of him. Anakin simply nodded in reply, avoiding Fallen Leaves's confused gaze.

"Now, do you want something from me?" the black cat demanded. "Fallen Leaves said you desperately need to see me."

"I wouldn't put it like that," Anakin replied coolly. "But I do require your assistance."

Her eyes glowed with curiosity. "And what would that be?"

Anakin then told her everything that had happened since he had came to the lake. From his, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka's arrival, to finding the tunnels and everything in between. Even his vision about meeting her and Fallen Leaves.

When he was finished, both the black cat and Fallen Leaves looked at each other and then back to Anakin. There was a long silence before the black cat said, "Your story is completely mouse-brain and normally I wouldn't believe you. But I have had dreams of meeting a cat just like you."

Anakin blinked in surprise. "Really?"

"Yes. About a moon ago, I dreamed I was in the tunnels and seeing a tom wondering through the tunnels, crying for help. At first, I thought nothing of it. But the dream replayed in my head over and over and over again. I finally decided to come to the tunnels and see if it was vision or me going mad." She paused for a second. "Apparently, it was a vision."

"So you're going to help with the Separatists, right?" Anakin asked hopefully.

The black cat's gaze darkened.

"That I do not promise. I left ThunderClan and the clans a long time ago and I wish to keep it that way. It was hard enough coming back here. However, I don't want ThunderClan to get destroyed… I will stay in the tunnels for a little bit longer and if my help is needed, I will give it. If not, it will be like I never existed."

Anakin nodded respectfully. "Thank you, I am grateful for your help."

The cat nodded. "I will also note that you should _not_ try to find me again. And don't mention me to anyone. I don't want to meet up with any clan cat. Especially ThunderClan."

Anakin didn't understand why she wanted this wish, but he will do as she asked. Even if it didn't make much sense.

"Alright. But before I go, I would like to know your name."

The black cat stared at Anakin, surprised by his question. But, she answered with a small smile.

"It's Hollyleaf."

* * *

Asajj walked in front of Obi-Wan, constantly looking behind her. Obi-Wan could tell that she was expecting him to attack her from behind. He couldn't figure out if he either concern about it or amused.

"You know, I'm not going to hurt you," Obi-Wan finally said.

Asajj hissed furiously.

"Why are you getting mad at me? I'm just saying."

"Shut up. Just, shut up."

"Okay, shutting up. Yep, I'm going to be _completely_ quiet. Not a word. Not one sound..." Obi-Wan continued to ramble, obviously trying to get rid of the hostel tension between them. Or annoy the hell out of Asajj. Either way, it was working.

But then out of the corner of Obi-Wan's eye, he saw a moving figure. He stopped all movement. "Stop where you are, Asajj," Obi-Wan ordered.

"What?" Asajj questioned a little fear in her voice.

"I saw something."

Obi-Wan walked towards a small bush where he saw the figure. There was no signs of any cat until Asajj let out a scream. Obi-Wan quickly turned and saw Anakin right on top of her, about to sink his claws into her neck. Asajj used the Force to get Anakin off her, but Anakin used all his strength to resist. He was about to attack Asajj again, but Obi-Wan got between them.

"She is on our side," Obi-Wan explained. "At least for now."

Anakin flinched back. "What? Are you insane?" he cried. "Obi-Wan, you do realize-"

"I know," Obi-Wan cut him off. "I don't like this as much as you do. In fact, none of us do. But we really have little choice."

"Obi-Wan, listen to yourself! The Separatists would never even consider working with us. Even to save their own lives!"

"On the contrary, we might."

Anakin and Obi-Wan faced Asajj, their gazes filled with confusion.

"We are not as heartless and evil as you think, Jedi," Asajj said coldly. "Grievous and I have formed an alliance to help protect the clans, as we do not want to see them slaughtered. We are willing to work with you. If _you_ can be reasonable that is."

Obi-Wan and Anakin stared at her blankly. "_Grievous _is willing to work with us?" Obi-Wan muttered in disbelief.

Asajj narrowed her eyes. "Yes, he is."

Obi-Wan was too speechless for words. He didn't know what to think. Grievous, his mortal enemy, willing to work with him to save the clans beside the lake? That cannot be.

_There has to be more to it,_ Obi-Wan thought.

"Why would that _monster_ want to help them?" Anakin questioned repeating Obi-Wan's thoughts.

"He is _not _a monster!"

Anakin and Obi-Wan stared at her.

Asajj backed away, apparently shocked that she said that herself. Obi-Wan flicked his tail.

"He's not?" he questioned.

"...Grievous is not that bad as he seems," Asajj explained trying to hide her uncertainty. "H-he can sound very logical and sensible at times." Asajj shook her head. "B-but that isn't the point. The point is that we must unite, even if it kills us. The clans are endanger from the Dark Forest...and from Dooku."

"Dooku?" Obi-Wan asked.

"I don't know what it is, but Dooku hasn't been the same since we got here," she explained. "He has changed. I don't even think he remembers who he is anymore. He is dangerous and we need to stop him before-"

Asajj cut herself off, her blue eyes widening.

Obi-Wan was about to ask what was wrong when a huge disturbance rippled through the Force. He had the sudden urge to go back to ThunderClan camp. He had to warn them. A danger was coming as fast as a lightning storm. He turned to Anakin and saw that he felt it too.

"I...I have to go!" Asajj ran towards ShadowClan territory.

Obi-Wan turned to Anakin. They gave each other a nod and ran back to ThunderClan camp. They ran as fast as they could, not even caring if Asajj left the territory or not.

"Firestar!" Obi-Wan cried.

He charged into camp, Anakin close by.

"Firestar, ShadowClan is going to attack!"

* * *

Asajj ran past tree after tree, not even sure where she was running to. But she needed to get there, no matter what. Something awful was about to happen, and she needed to stop it.

_Grievous, I'm coming!_

Asajj gasped.

_Grievous? Why am I concern about _him_? I don't care about him! It is ShadowClan I need to be worried about, not my rival! _

So why did she stand up for him back in ThunderClan territory?

Suddenly, Asajj saw Grievous laying down on the forest's floor, his fur covered in...bloody scratches!

"Grievous!" Asajj exclaimed.

Grievous turned to her calmly. "Asajj, did you find out where that scream came from?"

"What happened to you?" Asajj ran towards Grievous, staring franticly at his blood scratches.

"I continued training the ShadowClan warriors after you left. " Grievous explained. "I trained with Tigerheart, who also is a Dark Forest warrior. I'm surprised that he is one of them. He doesn't seem to be the vengeful, killing type."

"But don't you think you should have the medicine cats look at those?" Asajj questioned. "They look pretty bad."

"I'm fine." Grievous looked up at Asajj, puzzlement and suspicion in his yellow eyes. Asajj felt her face heat up at his gaze. "Why do you care anyway?"

"W-what?" Asajj backed up a little.

Grievous sat up as he said, "Why is my health part of your concern? If there is something you want, just say it."

Asajj glared at him. "There isn't anything I want! We're allies now and we need to make sure we're able to fight whatever comes our way. If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't care in the slightest!"

She turned her back on Grievous, to hide embarrassed that glowed on her face. She didn't understand why she was feeling this way, but she couldn't face his icy glare.

_What is _wrong_ with me?_

"I didn't find what the cry was," Asajj finally said after an awkward silence. "Though, I did run into Obi-Wan and Anakin."

"Really?" Grievous said his ears twitching in interest.

Asajj nodded. "We talked a bit and I think Obi-Wan is willing to work with us, not sure about Anakin."

"Figures," Grievous muttered to himself.

"I told them about Dooku," Asajj concluded. "They are aware of his threat. But while I was talking to them...I felt a disturbance in the Force. Did anything happened in camp recently?"

"I haven't been to camp since you left," Grievous answered.

He then got up and fasted walked towards ShadowClan camp, limping a bit. Asajj ran up to him.

"Your limping. Let me help you."

Asajj touched Grievous's side, making him flinch.

"I don't need your pity!" he snapped.

Grievous hurried past Asajj, trying his best not to limp. Asajj felt a little hurt, but quickly ignored that feeling. She walked behind Grievous, not even bothering to help him. When they got to the camp, they saw that most of the cats where crowding or where looking at Blackstar's den.

"What's going on?" Asajj asked as she approached Snowbird.

The white she-cat looked up at her, fear in her eyes. "I don't know. Dooku and Blackstar where having a meeting in his den and all of sudden, we heard yelling. Rowanclaw has ordered us to keep quiet and stay out of the way." She sighed heavily and her attention went back to the fighting back inside the den.

"Dooku, it doesn't work that way!" Blackstar was saying so loudly it was like he was in the middle of camp. "I've allowed you stay on my territory, gave you the ability to train my warriors, but I can't have you do _that_!"

"But we must!" Dooku screamed. "If ShadowClan is going to survive, then you must listen to me! The Jedi aren't going to wait around while we prepare. We must act quickly and effectively! Unless you rather see your clan in a pool of blood!"

Silence filled the air, tension all around. Asajj felt her heart stop. What was Dooku talking about? Why was Blackstar being so objective?

"...Fine," Blackstar said with a sigh. "Only if you let me handle it."

"I can assure you that your making the right decision, Blackstar," Dooku replied calmly like there never was an argument.

Everyone stayed quiet in the camp. Asajj turned to Grievous. He looked just as nervous as she was. Blackstar and Dooku then came out of the camp. Dooku twitched uncontrollably while Blackstar stared at his clan mates, his amber eyes filled with uncertainty and concern.

"Cats of ShadowClan," he said loudly. "The Jedi are coming and it won't be long until they came and try to invade us."

He sighed heavily.

"We must act quickly and without failure if we are to survive. We are going to war with ThunderClan, with RiverClan and WindClan at our sides!"


	19. Welcome To Hell

"What do you mean 'ShadowClan is going to attack?" Firestar asked puzzled and a bit disturbed.

Jayfeather stepped out of his den. He could feel the tension all around camp and could hear Obi-Wan and Anakin's heavy breathing.

"What's going on?" Jayfeather asked Briarlight.

"I don't know. But whatever it is, the Jedi are very worried about it," Briarlight answered.

Jayfeather nodded, his ears twitching. What where the Jedi trying to stir up?

"I've had a...I guess you can say 'vision' of ShadowClan preparing an attack, lead by the Separatists," Obi-Wan explained. "We need to act before they try to overwhelm us!"

"And how do we know if this is true?" Dustpelt questioned anger in his voice. "What proof do you have of this?"

"Do we need any proof?" Anakin snapped back. "If I heard correctly, the leader of ShadowClan _admitted_ to be working with the Separatists! I say, that is enough proof."

Enrage arguments went through the camp. So many voices shouting at once that Jayfeather couldn't figure out who was saying what. But Jayfeather remained where he was. He had the feeling what Obi-Wan said was true, but he wouldn't admit it. Nor did he feel like that they should order ThunderClan to do what they want.

But Firestar didn't seem offended by that. The ThunderClan leader then ordered a silence among the clan. When everyone was quiet, Firestar announced, "I understand that the Separatists are a threat and need to be getting rid of, but we just can't just accuse them of an invasion without being completely sure of it."

"I'm not saying we have to invade them, I'm just saying we need to prepare," Obi-Wan replied. "And maybe ally ourselves with WindClan or RiverClan. The more allies we have, the better chance we have of defeating them."

"Ally ourselves with another clan? Do you have _no_ respect for our clan ways?" Mousefur exclaimed enraged. "We do not just ask for help, we do things alone to stay strong! You should have at least known that by now!"

"I didn't mean to offend, Mousefur," Obi-Wan apologized. "I was just suggesting ways to fight the Separatists."

Jayfeather could picture Mousefur rolling her eyes, along with some of his other clan mates.

"That may be not a bad idea," Firestar said deep in thought. "With WindClan or RiverClan on our side, Blackstar might think twice before attacking."

Everyone gasped.

"Firestar, you're not serious are you?" Brambleclaw questioned.

"We may have little choice, if it is the only way to stop the madness. But I won't make my final decision until tomorrow. For I want StarClan's approval for this." Firestar turned to Jayfeather. "Jayfeather and I will make our way to the Moonpool tonight. We will be back at no later than dawn to make our next move. Are you okay with that, Jayfeather?"

More than anything, Jayfeather wanted to say no. Relying on the other clans was a bad idea, but he knew Firestar wouldn't change his mind. Jayfeather also recalled what the founding leaders said the last time he talked with StarClan.

_"You must keep cautious. You can't completely trust them, but you will have to work with them. Stay strong and never doubt your clan mates for a minute."_

ayfeather sighed heavily. "If…you think it is for the best, Firestar."

Firestar nodded in reply. "Good. We will set out as soon as you're ready."

* * *

Jayfeather and Firestar headed down the path from the Moonpool back to ThunderClan camp. It was a dreadful night. Jayfeather couldn't believe what he had heard. He was visited by Yellowfang, a previous ThunderClan medicine cat. She was as grumpy and ill tempered like she always was, but this time, her visit was brief, unlike the multiple times he had seen her.

"I don't trust the Jedi as much as you do," Yellowfang had said. "But I wouldn't totally doubt Firestar's judgment. This is all a game of chance, as neither StarClan nor the Dark Forest knows what the Jedi or Separatists is capable of completely. The best advice I can give you is to trust your instincts and know that StarClan will do its best to protect you."

_Yeah, right. I'm sure you will._

Jayfeather could sense that Firestar was anxious. He hadn't asked Firestar what StarClan had said to him, since he knew he wouldn't tell him. Though, he was still worried.

They then reached ThunderClan camp. Most of the warriors where still asleep and, to Jayfeather's relief, so where the Jedi.

"Why don't you check on Ahsoka while I gather the senior warriors," Firestar said. "I want to discuses StarClan's vision with them as well."

"But what did StarClan say to you?" Jayfeather questioned. "I would like to know what you are thinking before the others know."

Firestar smiled slightly. "You don't need to worry, Jayfeather, I know what I am doing."

Jayfeather rolled his eyes but said nothing.

He then entered his den. Both Briarlight and Ahsoka were asleep, their breathing slow and soft. Jayfeather approached Ahsoka and put his paw on top of her. Her heart rate seemed normal and she didn't have a fever.

_She is healing fast. Quiet impressive._

He heard her stir in her sleep, whimpering a bit. "No...go away! Get away from me..." Ahsoka mumbled.

Jayfeather could sense the fear and anxiety coming from her.

_Must be having a bad dream._

He then turned to leave but he could sense that someone was blocking him.

And he knew who it was.

"How is Ahsoka?" Anakin asked.

"She is fine," Jayfeather answered bluntly. "She just needs more rest."

Anakin glared at him. "You sure?"

Jayfeather hissed furiously. "I'm not going to harm her if that is what you are thinking! I am a _medicine cat_, not a _murder_! Now, unless you want something, get out of my way!"

Anakin flinched back a little. Jayfeather waited a second before he finally pushed his way through Anakin. But Anakin blocked Jayfeather's exist and then whispered in his ear, "If anything happens, and I mean _anything_, happens to Ahsoka, you are going to pay. Understand?"

He didn't wait for an answer as Anakin left to the Jedi's den. Jayfeather felt his claws sink into the ground. How _dare_ that Jedi threaten him when he was healing one his clan mate! He took a deep breath, desperate to control his anger. This wasn't the time to have his anger get the better of him. He needed to remain calm.

Jayfeather made his way to where Firestar and the other senior warriors' meeting place. There, the senior warriors where already talking among themselves, uneasiness in their voices.

"Firestar, what is going on?" Jayfeather questioned.

Firestar sighed heavily. "I told them my plan. We are going to ask for WindClan and RiverClan's assistance for when we invade ShadowClan."

Jayfeather stared at Firestar. Was he serious?

"'Invade ShadowClan, with WindClan _and _RiverClan?'" he repeated in disbelief.

Firestar nodded.

"Yes, though I hope it doesn't have to come to this. But in my vision at the Moonpool, I saw Blackstar address his clan that they were going to go to war with us with WindClan and RiverClan as allies. To prevent this we _must_ join forces with them before ShadowClan and the Separatists have the chance to. I don't like this as much as anyone else, but we don't have much choice."

"But Firestar-"

"What did StarClan tell you?" Firestar interrupted. "Did they say anything different to you?"

"I..." Jayfeather stuttered, as he didn't know how to respond. Yellowfang told him to trust Firestar, but with a plan like that... _But what choice do we really have? We have to get rid of the Separatists as soon as possible. But how could this possibly plan work?_

Jayfeather sighed heavily. "...Do what you want, Firestar. I don't approve, but I can't think of a better plan. I only hope that you know what you are doing."

* * *

Ahsoka ran through the Dark Forest as fast as she could. She had to get away. She needed leave this hell. She needed to get back to safety before it was too late.

Ahsoka turned around to see the figure was still chasing her.

"_Get away from me!_" Ahsoka screamed using the force to push back the figure.

The mysterious cat dogged, its' eyes never leaving hers. Fear pricked through her pelt.

_Is this cat unstoppable?_

Ahoska then gasped as she found herself at a dead end. She panicked and turned to the right. Tree after tree she past, not even stopping for a second. Finally, after running for a very long time, she had to stop as her lungs felt like they were going to explode. Panting heavily, Ahsoka turned around to see if her chaser was still behind her.

There was no one in sight.

With a sigh of relief, Ahsoka sat down, laying her head on her paws. Closing her eyes, she calmed herself down, hoping that she would be transferred back to ThunderClan. It was weird how all of this began.

Ever since her accouter with Grievous in the Dark Forest, Ahsoka had been using all her power with the force to heal herself. Though, it drained a lot of her energy so she had to sleep to gain it back. But then she came to the Dark Forest. Ahoska at first thought that Hawkfrost brought her here for another training session.

But he never showed up.

Then someone leaped out of the darkness and attacked her for no reason. She never had a good look at her intruder, because she was to scared at weak to fight back. But she knew for a fact that it wasn't Hawkfrost or even Tigerstar. It was someone much worse. Someone more aggressive and violent.

"What are you doing on the ground?"

Ahsoka opened her eyes and stood up, her claws unsheathed. In front of her was a dark furred cat, his cold amber eyes staring into her. Ahsoka blinked, his appearance faintly familiar.

"...You! You are the one I fought when I first came to the Dark Forest!" Ahsoka finally exclaimed.

The cat nodded, his tail flicking back and forth. "I see you remember. Surprising. You Jedi seem like the type of clan to deny all the bad experiences that happen to you."

Ahsoka glared at him. "Don't push it. I fought you once, and I can fight you again!"

"Even in your weaken condition you still continue to fight. I guess Tigerstar wasn't completely foolish to bring you here," the dark cat commented amusement in his voice.

Ahoska hissed. "Just who you do you think you are anyway?"

The cat chuckled. "One of the leaders of the Dark Forest. I am Brokenstar, a former leader of ShadowClan."

"Figures," Ahsoka muttered. "ShadowClan seems to be the cause of all of this disaster and evil."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that, Jedi," Brokenstar replied malevolently. "ThunderClan isn't as innocent as you think. In fact, each of the clans has had its' share of evil. But, I'm not going to waste my breath explaining this to you, for you would just ignore it. Just like any other ignorant, blind ThunderClan cat."

Ahsoka took a step closer to Brokenstar. "Why are you here? Where you the cat that was chasing me?"

"I was merely passing through," he answered truthfully. "I found you on the ground and wondered what a 'brilliant and powerful fighter' was doing laying down when she should be training." His eyes darkened. "Unless you betrayed us."

"I didn't 'betray' you monsters!" Ahsoka exclaimed. "Now, is there anything else you want from me? I would like to leave this place as soon as possible."

Brokenstar smiled slightly, his eyes glowing with hatred. "If you so wish. If you wonder for a bit, I'm sure you will find a way out. Of course, if the cat who trapped you here wishes to do so."

Ahsoka glared at him and before she could replied, he added, "And before you ask, no it wasn't me who sent you here and I don't know who did either."

Ahsoka growled under breath and walked passed Brokenstar. She forced herself to not show her fear, even though she was _so_ terrified out. It would only show weakness, something she couldn't afford to show.

Ahsoka walked through the misty forest of darkness, hoping for some kind of light would show itself. Her fur started to rise, as she felt like disaster was about to strike any moment.

"_What do you mean, you let her escape?_"

Ahsoka stopped all movement.

"I didn't mean to! She just disappeared!"

"Silence, you fool! I've heard all that I need to hear."

Ahoska walked slowly towards the voices. Her heart was beating faster and faster. She then found herself on top of a huge rock, overlooking a small clearing. There, two cats sat in the middle of it. One was an orange and white female cat was pacing back and forth, clearly furious. The other was gray male cat, his tail twitching uncomfortably.

Ahsoka gasped as she couldn't believe who she was seeing. _But who is he with?_

"There is no way she could have escaped," Dooku cried. "She must be here! I can sense it in the force!"

"It doesn't matter," the female cat replied. "She will be on her guard, now that she knows someone is after her. Did she see at you at all?"

"No."

"Well good. At least we still have the element of surprise to our advantage. Hopefully, none of the other Dark Forests members saw your failure. Tigerstar would have my head for this if he found out. But as if that matters when we find the young Jedi."

Ahsoka's breathing became heavier. What where they planning?

Dooku walked up to the orange and white cat. "Don't worry. I will hunter for her all night if I had to."

The cat nodded. "Then go after her. Ahsoka must not escape no matter what."

The two cats then ran out of the clearing. When they were gone from sight, Ahsoka fled, not even caring where she was going. She needed to find help as there was no way she could take on Dooku and the mysterious female cat at once.

"Brokenstar!" Ahsoka cried, "Tigerstar! Hawkfrost! Ivypaw!"

But no matter how loud she cried, there came no reply.

And then, someone appeared in front of her.

Ahsoka slowed down her pace, trying not to crash into the cat. When she came to stop, Ahsoka was staring face to face with the orange and white cat. She gasped, backing away slowly.

The cat smiled. "Hello, Ahsoka. I'm glad to see that you are alright. I've been waiting for you."

Ahsoka hissed shaking. "Cut the chatter! I know what you and Dooku are up to! And I can assure you that I won't let you get away with this! But just who are you anyway?"

The orange and white cat let out an insane laugh. "My name is Mapleshade, but that does not matter to you. Since you know, there is no point in talking. The end of the clans draws near and with you gone will bring them closer to their fate. Prepare to die, Jedi Ahsoka. For you will never see the light of day again!"

Mapleshade then launched herself at Ahsoka. Ahsoka dogged just in time and ran away, using the force to push her further away. But Mapleshade recovered quickly and was right on Ahsoka's trail. Seeing that there was no place to run, Ahsoka turned around and charged straight at Mapleshade. She slapped her in the face. Mapleshade flinched as Ahsoka attacked her nonstop. Mapleshade then blocked one of Ahsoka's attacks, unbalancing her.

Ahsoka fell on her back and Mapleshade got on top of her. Mapleshade ready her paw for the killing blow. Ahsoka watched in fear as she was paralyzed to do anything. She was too tired and too frighten to fight back. Mapleshade smiled wickedly. But in the middle of her move, her paw was held in mid air, making her unable to move her paw. Ahsoka turned to see her savior.

Dooku stood there, using the force to stop Mapleshade. Mapleshade hissed.

"Dooku, what are you doing? Let me go this instant!"

Dooku stared at Mapleshade and then at Ahsoka. Ahsoka stared back at Dooku, silently telling him to help her.

_Please, help me..._

Dooku's eyes were dull and blank, as if he wasn't fully present. He then approached Ahsoka. They stared at each other for a long moment. Mapleshade growled as she tried to break free of Dooku's grip. But then, Dooku put his paw on Ahsoka's head.

"Goodbye, Jedi," he whispered softly as he twisted Ahsoka's head.


	20. The Ghost of the Fallen Jedi

"Jayfeather, wake up! Ahsoka isn't breathing!"

Jayfeather imminently opened his eyes. He could sense Briarlight fear and anxiety and the smell of...

_Death!_

Jayfeather quickly rushed to Ahsoka's side. He couldn't hear a single sound from her and her body felt devastatingly cold. He put his paw on her heart. He felt nothing.

_No...it can't be..._

"She's...dead," Jayfeather whispered softly.

"'Dead?'" Briarlight exclaimed. "How could she be dead?"

"I don't know, Briarlight." Jayfeather sighed heavily. "I'm going to talk to Firestar. I need you to tell Obi-Wan what happened. Do _not_ mention this to Anakin, understand?"

Briarlight gave a puzzled look but only said, "Sure thing, Jayfeather."

Jayfeather left the medicine cat's den and walked to Firestar's den. He wondered if anyone has caught the smell of death. His heart began to race as he thought how Anakin would react to this. He didn't seem to be kidding when he made that threat... Jayfeather hoped that Obi-Wan would be more reasonable.

"Firestar, there is something you need to know," Jayfeather announced when he entered the ThunderClan leader's den.

Firestar woke up from his sleep and looked up at Jayfeather. "Jayfeather are you alright? You look grim."

"Something terrible as just happened," Jayfeather explained. "Briarlight woke up and found Ahsoka not breathing. I checked on her and she was icy cold and her heartbeat had stop. Ahsoka is dead, but for how long, I cannot say."

Firestar stood up, his green eyes filled with disbelief. "How did she die?" he asked.

"I don't know," Jayfeather confessed. "She was just fine last night. I honestly have no idea what could have happened."

Firestar was silent for a long moment. He then said, "Do the Jedi know about this yet?"

"I told Briarlight to speak to Obi-Wan. I don't think Anakin should know about this though."

Firestar's whiskers twitched. "Why not? Ahsoka was his clan mate. He has the right to know."

"I know, but he... I just don't think he would take it that well."

"Excuse me, but may we come in?"

Jayfeather and Firestar turned to see Obi-Wan and Anakin at the den's entrance. Jayfeather's heart sunk when he felt Anakin's presences.

"Did you find out?" Firestar asked.

Obi-Wan nodded slowly, grief in his eyes.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Firestar said sympathetically. "This is a loss to ThunderClan as it is to you. Ahsoka shall be missed."

"We thank you for all of your help," Obi-Wan replied mostly to Jayfeather. "We knew she was in good hands with you. But apparently it was her time to go..."

There was a long silence in the den, no cat wishing to speak. "If I may ask, how did she die?" Anakin questioned Jayfeather his voice cracking with emotion.

An emotion that Jayfeather couldn't tell if it was anger or sadness.

"I don't know. It is a mystery to me as it is to you. The best explanation I can give you is that her heart just stopped. She did lose a lot of blood after all."

"But she was recovering fine," Anakin added his tail flicking back and forth. "Someone must have caused her death. What kind of medicine did you give her?"

Jayfeather narrowed his eyes. "If you think I caused it, you are sadly mistaken. I have no herbs that would cause death. And even if I gave her the wrong medication, Brairlight would be able to fix it. Do you think _she_ let Ahsoka die as well?"

Anakin remained silent.

"We need to let the clan know what happened," Firestar announced breaking the tension. "Then we need to think about visiting WindClan. After all, the Separatist are still at large."

* * *

Ahsoka slowly opened her eyes, her neck burning with pain. She laid perfectly still, as she tried to recall what happened. Her memory was fuzzy, as if a part of herself is preventing her from remembering.

She remembered being in the Dark Forest. She was being chased and she met up Brokenstar, the cat she fought when she first got there. Then she saw Dooku and another cat. The other cat's name was Mapleshade. She and Mapleshade fought and Mapleshade pinned her down to the ground. She was about to kill her until Dooku interrupted. He could have knocked out Mapleshade right then and there, but he instead put his paw on Ahsoka's neck...

Ahsoka's eyes widen.

_No...it couldn't be! He didn't really..._

"Finally you are awake."

Ahsoka jumped as she saw a beautiful dark tortoiseshell female cat standing before her. She smiled warmly at her. "It's alright, you're not in the Dark Forest anymore. My name is Spottedleaf, a ThunderClan medicine cat."

Ahsoka relaxed a little, getting on her feet. She was no longer in that hellish place. She was safe, at least for now. She looked around and saw that she was in a place similar to the Dark Forest. It was a thick forest, only it was full light and she could see mice and squirrels running all over the place. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

Ahsoka then looked back at Spottedleaf, who's green gaze was full of sympathy and sadness. Ahsoka's heart sank. "...What happened to me? Where am I?"

Spottedleaf sighed heavily. "You are in StarClan, Ahsoka. Your spirit traveled here when you...when you were killed."

Ahsoka fell to the ground, her body becoming numb. "No! I can't be dead! I wasn't even there physically!" Ahsoka shouted hysterically. "This can't be happening! What about Anakin and Obi-Wan? The rest of the Jedi Order and the Republic? What about the _war_?"

"Ahsoka, calm down!" Spottedleaf exclaimed. "Let me explain."

"What is there to explain? I'm _dead_! I was murdered in cold blood! ...And now ThunderClan and the rest of the clans are at the mercy of the Separatists... _And I can't do anything about it!_"

Ahsoka began to weep, her frustration and sorrow taking over her mind. She was gone forever, and before she even became a full Jedi!

"Calm down, Jedi. You're not completely powerless." A blue gray cat then walked up to Ahsoka. She helped Ahsoka stand up. "Your only dead in this universe," the blue gray cat said.

Ahsoka stared at her puzzled.

"Bluestar is right," Spottedleaf added. "You would have returned to your original body if I hadn't stop your spirit from leaving our dimension."

A small flicker of hope appeared in Ahsoka's heart. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"When you and the others came to our world, only your spirits came, not your bodies," Bluestar explained. "Your bodies are back on Kamino, with your own clan mates as before."

"How do you know this? How long have we've been gone from our universe?"

"We are not sure exactly. We only got this information when your spirit traveled here. But we know for a fact that you are not completely dead, since we got a faint glance at your world. If Spottedleaf didn't stop you soul, you would have returned to your own body. We stopped you because StarClan needs to learn as much as we can about you and the Separatists. But if you want to return, we won't stop you."

Ahsoka stayed silent for a long time, trying to process all of this. If she went back, she would return to her old life, like her death never happened. But she couldn't turn her back on ThunderClan and the other clans. Anakin and Obi-Wan still needed her.

"Then I need to speak with everyone in StarClan," Ahsoka finally said. "The sooner everyone knows, the better."

Bluestar smiled. "I'm glad you're willing to help us. We all appreciate it. But you've been through a lot, Ahsoka. You should get some rest. You are welcome anywhere in ThunderClan's area of StarClan though I advice to stay away from the other clan's territory, until they know that you are here. If you need anything, just ask for me or Spottedleaf."

Bluestar then walked away with Spottedleaf at her side. When they were gone, Ahsoka let out a deep sigh. Even though she wanted to warn the rest of StarClan, she was exhausted. She needed to rest.

Ahsoka walked a little bit until she found herself at a lake. She sat the lake's edge and stared at her reflection. She expected to see her cat form, but she instead saw the face of a togruta.

Ahsoka's actual face. Her true spirit.

Ahsoka closed her eyes tightly. She wondered how everyone on Kamino was doing. How where the clones and did they won the battle? Ahoska felt a tang of homesickness. She had been a cat for so long... She couldn't wait to get home, back in her own universe. She couldn't wait to be alive again.

_I hate being dead already._

* * *

Dooku stared at his paws, his eyes unblinking. Even though there was nothing on his paws, he could still feel the warmth of Ahsoka's neck. He killed her, just like any other enemy he had ever faced. But why did this one feel different? Dooku could easily recall the events of that night.

The young Jedi came to the Dark Forest, clueless and relaxed for the most part. Dooku hid in the shadows, waiting for her to appear. To kill her, to get rid of her. He chased her through the darkness, nonstop running. He almost had her, if that dark cat didn't stop him. The cat blocked him, demanding what he was doing. Dooku quickly explained and the cat smiled a bit. He then introduced himself as Brokenstar, a leader of the Dark Forest. He offered to kill Ahsoka, as he had a grudge against her. Dooku reclined, as he wanted to do this himself.

Or at least at first.

Then Mapleshade found the young Jedi, and was about to kill her. Dooku, for whatever reason stopped her. Mapleshade had glared at him with furious amber eyes. And then Ahsoka looked up at him. The way she looked up at him, the fear and pleading look in her blue eyes.

_"Please, help me," _they said._ "Help me..."_

Guilt went through his heart as he picture himself on top of the young Jedi, his paw on her neck and his eyes burning into hers. His own words rang into his ears.

_"Goodbye, Jedi."_

He twisted her neck, making it snap. He felt it break under the pressure of his paw. When she died, he had stared at her emotionless.

Not feeling a thing.

But Mapleshade was pleased. "Good work, my apprentice," she had said. "We're one step closer to destroying the clans, and you returning home. I wish you luck with recruiting RiverClan tomorrow. Don't fail me now."

She disappeared and Dooku then returned to ShadowClan.

Alone.

Dooku cursed at himself. _Why am I feeling guilty for killing that girl? She was just like anyone else who I ever killed to get what I wanted. She needed to die, so that I may live._

Dooku glanced over at Grievous and Asajj. They were both asleep, oblivious to the murder that just happened. He noticed that they both seem a lot closer than before. Asajj was sleeping close to Grievous, who seemed not to notice. Dooku's pelt rose. If they become any closer, they could team up against him. He couldn't let that happen. He knew he had to kill them eventually.

_My best general and apprentice, turned against me. I've should of seen this coming. Here or back home._

Dooku stood up and walked out of the den. He saw Blackstar talking to Littlecloud and Rowanclaw. Dooku approached them, his tail twitching. The thoughts of Ahsoka where gone and the thoughts of power replaced it.

"Dooku?" Blackstar asked when he noticed Dooku's presents.

Dooku cleared his throat. "I was just coming to see if we are ready to recruit RiverClan. The sooner we ally ourselves with them, the sooner the Jedi fall."


	21. TigerClan and LionClan Reborn

Onestar laid still in his den, having the biggest headache of his life. His thoughts where full of worry. He knew something was wrong. Something big was going to happen and WindClan was going to be in the middle of it.

He sighed heavily.

_Curse Firestar and Blackstar!_ he thought bitterly. _If they didn't let those __rogues__ in their camps, this wouldn't be happening! What were they thinking? _

What were they thinking indeed.

Onestar opened his amber eyes and saw his deputy, Ashfoot walking slowly towards him. "Onestar, Firestar wants to talk to you," she announced her voice uneasy.

Onestar stood up, his tail twitching a little. What could Firestar want? Unless…

"Are the Jedi with him?" Onestar asked.

Ashfoot stared at him for a moment.

Finally, she said, "There are two toms I don't recognize, but do have ThunderClan scent on them. I believe that they are the Jedi Firestar mention at the Gathering."

Ashfoot paused for a second. "Do you still want to see them?"

Onestar stayed silent. He didn't want to be brought into this Jedi and Separatists insanity. They have already seemed to have taken over ThunderClan and ShadowClan. He didn't want WindClan to suffer the same fate.

Onestar walked pass Ashfoot. "Where are they?"

"At the ThunderClan border."

"Take me to them," Onestar ordered. "I want to get this over with."

* * *

Onestar followed Ashfoot to the ThunderClan border, where the Jedi were waiting. Onestar felt his pelt bristle. Where the Jedi as heroic as Firestar had said or as wicked as Blackstar warned? What did they want with him? Onestar forced himself to stay calm. He couldn't show _any_ weakness. No matter what.

When they got to the boarder, Onestar saw Nightcloud, Breezepelt, and Boulderpaw glaring at Firestar. An orange tom and a brown tom stood beside Firestar, their eyes not showing any emotion.

_They must be the Jedi. The moment of truth arises. _

"Greetings, Firestar," Onestar said coolly. "I hear you wish to speak with me."

"Hello, Onestar," Firestar replied. "I'm glad you are willing to listen. I know these are difficult times, but ThunderClan seeks WindClans help with fighting ShadowClan."

Onestar stared at Firestar. Was he serious?

"What! How _dare_ you ask that!" Nightcloud screamed her black fur rising. "What makes you think we would help you?"

The enraged she-cat put herself in front of Firestar, her claws unsheathed. But before she could do anything, Onestar put his tail in front of her. "Easy, Nightcloud," he ordered. "I want to hear what Firestar has to say, along with the Jedi."

Onestar turned his gaze to the two Jedi. The brown tom was glaring at Nightcloud while the orange one was looking right back at him. Nightcloud gave Onestar a puzzled and angry look, but did what he asked. She sat next to Breezepelt, her green eyes never leaving the ThunderClan cats.

"Firestar, _if _ShadowClan is endangering your clan as you say, I _may_ be able to help you. However, the if Separatists are involved." Onestar approached the Jedi. "I want to hear the Jedi's side of the story. From _their own _words. So tell me, Jedi of the Republic, _who_ exactly are you?"

The brown Jedi's fur rose in anger while the orange Jedi nodded at Onestar calmly. "I do apologize if we are disturbing your clan, Onestar. But we do need your assistance to save your clan, and the other clans, from destruction."

Onestar's right ear twitched, clearly unimpressed. "Then explain yourself, as I've asked."

The orange tom, Obi-Wan, then explained everything about the Jedi order, and the Separatists. Everything he said was exactly what Firestar told him at the Gathering. Onestar put each word Obi-Wan said into deep thought. The Jedi sounded sincere, but he could be lying as easily. But there is no way to know for sure. He knew very little of the Jedi and the Separatists themselves. Both where a threat, if you thought about it.

But Onestar had to make a decision.

Even if Obi-Wan is telling the truth, and ThunderClan was really endanger from ShadowClan...Onestar would be putting his own clan at risk_. _

_But not doing anything could make things worse. I can't risk failing my clan._

Onestar turned to Ashfoot. "Ashfoot, I would like to speak with you for a moment in private," he ordered.

Ashfoot nodded solemnly and she followed Onestar. When they were out of earshot from the others, Onestar asked, "What do you think of this? Do you believe what Obi-Wan said?"

Ashfoot was silent for a long moment. "I don't think we have a choice. We will have to do something about them sooner or later. Firestar and Blackstar are acting, we should as well. The sooner their gone, the better." She looked into Onestar's eyes. "What you do is your choice, Onestar. All I can tell you is that WindClan will support whatever your decision is."

Onestar looked away from his deputy and sighed heavily. He knew what to do, but he didn't like it. Onestar signaled Ashfoot to return to the rest of the patrol. When they got back, Onestar approached Firestar.

"If you really need WindClan's support, I will give you a few warriors. I'm only doing this because I trust _your_ judgment more than Blackstar's. But I swear by StarClan, if WindClan come into any danger, I will crush you so hard, Firestar, that ThunderClan will be nothing more than a piece of crow-food!"

The other Jedi, Anakin's fur rose in anger while Firestar remained calm. "I won't let anything happen to WindClan," Firestar promised.

Onestar remained silent.

"We thank you, Onestar," Obi-Wan added. "We will make sure your clan is safe."

Onestar narrowed his eyes at the Jedi. "You better, for your sake."

"So we're _really_ going to help them?" Nightcloud questioned.

Onestar nodded. "We have little choice, Nightcloud. I don't like this as much as you do. But we need to deal with this unknown enemy."

Nightcloud hissed in reply. Breezepelt and Boulderpaw looked just as displeased. Onestar avoided their gaze.

_I hope I am doing the right thing._

"Now all we need to do is recruit RiverClan," Obi-Wan went on. "With you and their support, the Separatists won't have a chance."

Obi-Wan crossed the border along with Anakin. Breezepelt and Nightcloud rose but Ashfoot said, "Let them pass. Their our allies now."

Breezepelt muttered something under his breath but did as he was told, along with Nightcloud.

Firestar turned to Onestar. "Come with us to RiverClan. Mistystar will most likely join us if she sees WindClan is fighting against the Separatists."

"Just because I've allied myself with you that doesn't mean you have the authority to give me orders," Onestar growled. "But I will come."

Firestar nodded. "I see. The sooner the Separtists are gone; the sooner things will go back to normal."

Onestar's tail twitch. _They better be..._

* * *

Mistystar felt her fur stand on all ends as she saw Blackstar and the Separatists standing on RiverClan territory. When her deputy, Reedwhisker, requested her presents near the ShadowClan border, she thought her clan was under attack. But now only seeing only Blackstar and the Separatists alone, she felt her heart beat grow faster.

_What could they possibly want?_

"Blackstar, what is the meaning of this?" Mistystar accused before he had a chance to speak.

"I apologize for this, Mistystar," Blackstar replied tiredness in his voice. "But desperate times call for desperate measures. And unfortunately, the threat of the Jedi needs to be dealt with. And the Separatists need all the help they can get."

Mistystar's eyes widen. "Blackstar, I can't just order my warriors to invade ThunderClan with little knowledge of the Jedi themselves. I mean, Firestar wouldn't ally himself with cats that would kill others to satisfy their own ambition."

"The Jedi can be very persuasive, my dear," the gray cat interrupted. "They can seem like a friend to any cat they wish to convenes."

Mistystar flicked her tail. "And who are you?"

"I am Dooku, the leader of the Separatists."

Mistystar froze. _This must be the cat Firestar warned us about!_

Dooku smiled sympathetically. "Don't worry, if things go according to my plan, you won't need to sacrifice any of your warriors."

"What plan?" Mistystar questioned.

"To defeat the Jedi without any bloodshed, we need to combine our strengths. With warriors from ShadowClan, RiverClan, and WindClan, ThunderClan will be so intimidated that they will surrender the Jedi to us."

"And what do you plan to do with the Jedi?"

Dooku's eyes darkened.

"That is what me and the rest of the Separatists will deal with. But I promise you that it won't affect your clan in the slightest."

Mistystar turned her gaze to Blackstar. The ShadowClan leader showed no emotion, or if he did, he kept it to himself.

_Was_ ThunderClan being misled?

"Tell me more about the Jedi first," Mistystar finally said. "I want to know what they are _really_ like."

Dooku nodded as he told everything he knew about the Jedi and the Clone Wars. As he talked, Mistystar was completely shocked by what she heard. The Jedi sounded so controlling power-hungry. Forcing people to be in their alliance or die. They sounded like ShadowClan when Tigerstar was their leader. Bad memories went through her head as Mistystar recalled the events that happened so long ago.

She could let that happened again.

_And when we get rid of the Jedi; the Separatists will go as well. It is a win either way._

"When do you plan to invade ThunderClan?" Mistystar finally asked.

"That we will discuss when we have WindClan's support," Dooku answered.

Mistystar stayed silent for a long moment, deep in thought. She then let out a long sigh.

"I'll give as much support as I can. But I will consider RiverClan's safety before anything else, understand?"

Dooku smiled. "Good to see that you'll listen to reason. Now, come with us as we get Onestar's support."

"Don't order me around," Mistystar said coldly. "I'll come with you as soon as I tell my clan what is going on."

"If you wish. We will move out when you are ready."

Dooku then walked towards the lake and sat down, looking at the water. While he was out of ear shot, Mistystar whispered to Blackstar, "Are you sure about this?"

Blackstar avoided her gaze. "I don't know, Mistystar. All I know is that the Jedi cannot be trusted and need to get rid of as soon as possible. If I have to work with the Separatists to get rid of them, then I will."

* * *

Obi-Wan followed Firestar and Onestar towards the RiverClan boarder. He felt great confidence as everything was going so perfectly. They recruited WindClan, even if Onestar was weary of them. If they could get Mistystar with them, ShadowClan will have to surrender the Separatists to avoid war.

Obi-Wan noticed that Anakin was tensed right beside him. His fur was on its' end, and his eyes clouded in his thoughts as he walked.

"You alright, Anakin?" Obi-Wan asked concerned.

Anakin blinked at Obi-Wan, as if he just now realized he was there.

"I'm okay. Just thinking about Ahsoka…" He lost his voice.

Obi-Wan nodded sympathetically. "I know how you feel, but we have to stay focus. The Separatists need to be taken care of as soon as possible."

"But it doesn't feel right!" Anakin exclaimed. "She was in good health the night before! She couldn't have just _died_ over night like that! There's _no way!_"

Obi-Wan frowned. "Do you think Jayfeather murdered her?"

Anakin sighed heavily. "It is a possibility. He's not that fond of us, as you know. But I know for sure _something_ happened to Ahsoka that night. Intentional or not."

His blue eyes darkened with hatred.

"But if Ahsoka was murdered. I will hunt down her murder and make them suffer to _no end_!"

Obi-Wan gasped silently. "Anakin, you know that isn't the Jedi way!"

"Doesn't matter, Obi-Wan. Ahsoka needs to be avenged," he responded coldly.

"Anakin-"

Obi-Wan stopped dead in his tracks as he saw Blackstar and the RiverClan leader walking towards them. With Dooku at their side.

_ No! Are we too late?_

"What are you doing here?" Anakin cried as he charged at Dooku.

The Sith Lord glared at him. "I could ask you the same question, Skywalker."

"Blackstar, Mistystar, what is the meaning of this?" Firestar asked.

"What is it to you?" Blackstar spat. "_We're_ trying to get rid of the Jedi and bring peace back to the clans!"

"But that's what we're doing, only to get rid of the Separatists," Onestar said.

Blackstar glared at Onestar. "You're _joining_ them, Onestar? I really would have expected better from you."

"And your any better, Blackstar, Mistystar?"

"What do you expect me to do?" Mistystar exclaimed. "I need to protect my clan!"

"But are you willing to go to war?" Firestar questioned.

Mistystar stayed silent avoiding eye contact.

Obi-Wan stiffened. This was not going to end well!

And Anakin and Dooku weren't handling the situation any better.

"If you think we're going to let you get away with this, you can think again Dooku!" Anakin cried.

Dooku smirked. "Are you? As Asajj said at our last encounter, how are you any different? But...as if that matters." Dooku looked away, his eyes seeming distant. "You do realize that if you help the clans, we will never go home. They are the cause to all of this. Us winding up here, in this savage and alien place..."

Dooku looked up. The madding look in his eyes made both Anakin and Obi-Wan flinch. "The only way to leave, is to destroy the source. The clans must die!"

"You bastard!"

Anakin screamed as he leaped onto Dooku. Dooku kicked Anakin in the stomach and got to his feet. Obi-Wan quickly go in between them. He saw the other leaders haven't noticed yet, as they were too busy bickering among themselves_._

_ If they see us fighting, they might turn against _both_ of us! _

"Dooku, listen to me," Obi-Wan said calmly. "Destroying the clans won't solve anything. Remember what Rock said? He said we were brought here to _help_ the clans. If we help them, then we will return home. Violence isn't necessary at all."

Dooku flicked his tail. "Rock didn't bring us here fully! One wants us to defend the clans, one wants us to destroy. We don't know if Rock would brings us back to Kamino! But Mapleshade will! She promised me... _The clans must die so I can live!_"

"Dooku, you're not making sense!" Obi-Wan exclaimed unsheathing his claws. "Who is Mapleshade? We need to work together to survive!"

Dooku ignored him and walked up to the clan leaders. Once he got their attention, he glared at Firestar and Onestar. "You're making a big mistake siding with the Jedi. Nothing good will come out of it, as I know from first hand experience. If you want your clans to be safe, join me."

"I would never let evil cats like you take control of my clan," Firestar said coldly.

Onestar said nothing in reply.

Dooku growled. "Very well. I can see there is no hope for ThunderClan or WindClan. But there _is_ hope for ShadowClan and RiverClan." Dooku turned to every cat, including Obi-Wan and Anakin. Obi-Wan couldn't believe the next few words he heard from Dooku's mouth.

"The next time all of us meet, we'll be talking with claws instead of words. I give you two days to turn over the Jedi, since I don't wish to destroy your clans. But if you don't, you give me little choice."

Dooku turned his back on them, heading back into RiverClan territory. "Remember, two days." And then he left, not even waiting for Mistystar or Blackstar.

The ShadowClan and RiverClan leaders both turned to Firestar and Onestar. Blackstar's eyes showed frustration and anger while Mistystar's where emotionless. They then left, not even making a comment of what Dooku spoke of.

Obi-Wan stared into the distant RiverClan territory. He didn't know what to think. He turn to Anakin, who was just as confused.

First Ahsoka turns up dead and now Dooku rambles about a cat named 'Mapleshade.' Could this Mapleshade cat be behind Ahsoka's death? It was a possibility, though Obi-Wan couldn't be sure if this cat existed.

But he had a feeling she did and that she wasn't a cat to be messed with.

"What do you advice us to do?" Firestar suddenly asked, breaking Obi-Wan out of his thoughts.

Obi-Wan let out a long sigh. "The only thing we can do is prepare for the worse."

_Because the true battle has just begun. The reason why we've been brought here will now truly reveal itself. For the better or worse._


	22. The Night Before

Grievous laid on the forest floor, his body aching with exhaustion. Ever since Dooku and Blackstar said that they and RiverClan had united to go to war with ThunderClan and WindClan, he and Asajj had been training the ShadowClan and RiverClan warriors nonstop. Grievous was assigned to train the ShadowClan cats while Asajj worked with the RiverClan cats.

He sighed heavily.

This was bad. Now that Dooku has control of both RiverClan and ShadowClan, there was a good of him succeeding. Whatever he was trying to accomplish. And yet he couldn't do anything about it.

At least not yet. He had to wait for the right time, the right moment. He had to be patient.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Grievous turned around to see Asajj walking towards him, looking just as tired as he was.

"How was the training with RiverClan?" Grievous asked as Asajj sat down next to him.

"The RiverClan warriors learned really fast," Asajj explained. "I mainly taught them strategies that would work best near the lake shore, since they would have the better advantage there."

She paused.

"Is there any way to avoid this battle? Can't we talk Blackstar out of this?"

"We could, but it will make things worse."

Asajj gave him a puzzled look.

Grievous sighed. "What I mean is that if Blackstar is the person I think he is, he would banish or worse, kill us, if he found out that Dooku was trying to destroy his clan. And if what Rock said was true, we need to protect ShadowClan at all costs."

"But what can we do if we are leading them to their deaths?"

"The only thing we can do. Kill the Jedi."

"But Rock said-"

"I know what Rock said!" Grievous cut her off. "But we can't win divided. So, we take out the source, the problem is solved."

Asajj stayed silent, her eyes deep in thought. Grievous couldn't tell exactly what she was thinking, but he knew it had something to do with the Jedi.

_I don't see why she is so reluctant to kill them. If we're back at home, she would have slayed Obi-Wan in a heartbeat._

But if they where home, none of this would be happening.

"Grievous," Asajj suddenly asked breaking him out of his thoughts. "Have you've thought about what will happen when we leave this place?"

Grievous stayed silent.

He never thought about coming home. All he could think about was slaying the Jedi and protecting the clans. But...did he _want _to go back? It was a question that he avoided to answer. Because he didn't _have_ an answer.

"Grievous, did you hear me?"

Grievous turned to Asajj. "Why do you ask?" he asked trying to change the subject.

Asajj avoided eye contact. She clearly felt uncomfortable.

"Well...I was wondering what will happen to...us. I mean...will we still be friends or go back to hating each other?"

Grievous flicked his tail. Yet, another question he didn't have the answer for.

"I don't know." he finally said. "I guess that would depend on what happens."

Asajj nodded understandingly. Though her eyes shown with disappointment.

And Grievous knew why.

They sat in the awkward silence again. Suddenly, a dark shadow appeared over them.

"I thought I would find you two here..."

Both Grievous and Asajj jumped to see Dooku standing behind them.

Grievous growled. "What is it, Dooku?"

"I was trying to see if my suspicions were true." Dooku's eyes narrowed. "Apparently, they were."

"What are you talking..." Grievous cut himself off.

"What! Do you seriously think we would... God damn you Dooku!" Asajj shouted.

Dooku ignored her and continued, "If you think I wouldn't notice your plotting and scheming, then you where wrong! Did you really think you could out smart me?"

"What are you talking about?" Grievous questioned making sure Dooku kept his distance between him and Asajj.

Dooku hissed. "I can see you've had thought this out, but I am afraid I am one step ahead of you."

Asajj took a step forward. "And what would that be?" she questioned.

Dooku laughed softly. "You'll find out soon enough, if you continue your conspiracy."

He paused for a moment.

"But, there may be some loyalty left in you. If you head me advice and not fight in the battle tomorrow, you will be spared." He sighed heavily. "I don't want to lose my best general and apprentice. But it may be I have no other choice."

He looked at Grievous and Asajj in the eyes. Grievous could tell there was more to what Dooku had said then what met the eye. Something was _very_ wrong with him.

"Dooku, what's going on?" Grievous asked. "What are you not telling us?"

Dooku's neck fur rose in response. He then walked slowly away, not even bothering to answer Grievous's question. Which made Grievous worry more.

He then turned to Asajj and said, "Asajj, I don't want you to fight in the battle tomorrow. I want you to stay in ShadowClan camp, in case something happens."

"What! Do you really expect me to sit and do nothing while you fight? I don't think so!"

Asajj stood up to Grievous, ready for any kind of fight. But, to her surprise, Grievous pushed her back.

"Look, if you think I'm just getting you out of the way so I could have an easier time to kill the Jedi, then you are sadly mistaken."

"That isn't what I'm worried about!"

Asajj pushed herself close to Grievous. Her eyes glowed with concern and fear.

"I don't want you to get hurt. I want to help you."

"Asajj, if only one of us is fighting, Dooku will only have one of us to go after. Plus if something happens at the camp, one of us will be there to protect it."

Grievous then stepped away from Asajj, avoiding her gaze.

"...And I don't want you to get hurt either."

He then walked away, fearing for the worst.

* * *

"Jayfeather," Anakin said trying to sound as calm as possible.

"Yes, Jedi?" Jayfeather asked as he turned to him.

Anakin felt his blood curl. "I want to know, did anything happen during the night when Ahsoka died?"

Jayfeather stayed silent for a long moment, as if trying to think of the right response. With a deep breath of air, he answered, "I've already told you what happened."

He paused for a minute. "Though, if you want my true opinion on this, I think Ahsoka killed herself. She just simply didn't have the will to live anymore. And having to deal with someone like you every moon, I can see why."

With that statement, Anakin leaped on top of Jayfeather, cornering him to the wall of the medicine cats' den.

"Don't play games with me, Jayfeather!" Anakin threatened. "I know for a fact that she didn't die of a natural cause. Something _did_ happen to her, and you're going to tell me what happened! Or I swear you will regret you ever met me!"

He put his paw on Jayfeather's throat. Anakin smiled slightly as he could sense the tiny fear in Jayfeather.

_Serves you right, you son of a bitch._

"If you think threatening me is going to bring your friend back, then you're more foolish then I thought," the ThunderClan medicine cat growled. "Kill me now if you wish, but you will have to answer to the clan when they see my blood on your paws."

Anakin stopped all movement, his breathing becoming faster. More than anything, he wanted to sink his claws in Jayfeather's neck. But he knew it wouldn't accomplish anything. This was the worst time to be making enemies.

Anakin then let go of Jayfeather and walked out of the den. He needed to get away. Just then, he saw Ivypaw walk towards him.

"...Anakin, I need to talk to you, in private," she said her voice shaking.

"Are you alright, Ivypaw?" Anakin asked concern.

What could be bothering her?

"It...has something to do with Ahsoka," Ivypaw explained. "I'll tell you everything when we are in a quiet place."

Anakin felt his heart beat go faster as he and Ivypaw left the camp. When they knew that they were out of earshot, Ivypaw sighed heavily and said, "Okay...I don't know where to begin... Have you've noticed that Ahsoka always seem tired at sunrise?"

"Yes, but I didn't think much about it, why?"

_What is she trying to tell me?_

"Okay...well, I know what caused it. You see...Ahsoka and I have been...training at night. But isn't what you think." She paused for a moment, trying to get the right words. "We've...been contacted by cats in the Dark Forest, to become better fighters to serve ThunderClan. At least that was my intention. I don't why Ahsoka was there, but we've been training together. Until one night, when me and my mentor where training, Ahsoka did not come. I asked him why Ahsoka wasn't here and he told me that she wouldn't be training with us anymore. I didn't question it much at the time."

She sighed heavily. Anakin noticed that she was shaking. Whatever happened, it affected Ivypaw really hard.

"...After training, I then tried to leave the Dark Forest. But before I left, I heard someone scream my name. It sounded like Ahsoka, so I followed it. I ran as fast as I could, but when I got there...I saw Ahsoka on the ground...with two other cats who I didn't recognize. The she-cat was standing over Ahsoka, looking like she was about to kill her and the tom just stood over her. After hesitating for a bit, and before I could comprehend what was going on, I saw the tom put his paw on Ahsoka's neck."

She began to stutter.

"H-he unsheathed his claws and looked into Ahsoka's eyes. He then whispered something to her and before I knew it...he broke Ahsoka's neck."

Her voice cracked and tears started to run down her eyes.

"I-I'm sorry, Anakin. I wished I had done something, but I was too scared... I-I didn't know what to do afterword's so I didn't say anything. I'm so sorry!"

Ivypaw began to cry, though she tried her best to keep it all in. Anakin just stared at her, anger rising inside of him.

"Could you describe the two cats for me, Ivypaw?" Anakin asked.

Ivypaw nodded. "The she-cat had orange and white fur, but I couldn't see her face. The tom looked more like an elder to me, he-"

"That's all I need to know, Ivypaw," Anakin said cutting her off. "Thank you for telling me."

Ivypaw started at him bewildered. "Wait...you're not made at me? I thought-"

"Well you thought wrong." Anakin turned to Ivypaw, his gaze softening. "I wish you told me earlier, but I understand your reasoning. Thank you, Ivypaw. I promise you Ahsoka will be avenged."

He then left the young apprentices, heading back to camp. Obi-Wan would want to hear this.

_Watch out, Dooku, I'm coming for you._

* * *

Ahsoka slowly walked the plains of StarClan, her mind drifting from place to place. The thought of her being dead was still trying sinking in. She just couldn't believe it. It seemed impossible.

Although, it seemed like the longer she was in StarClan, the worse her memory became of the event. She barely could remember her death and everything before that was hard to recall.

_Am I losing my memory because I am dead?_

She didn't know how long it will be until she would forget completely. Hopefully by then, the clans will be safe.

"Are you okay, Ahsoka?"

Ahsoka turned to see Bluestar approaching her. She gave her a concern look. Ahsoka smiled slightly.

"I'm fine...or at least as fine as I can be."

Bluestar nodded. "I understand. It is hard getting use to being dead. Although, I died peacefully. But it will be over soon, I promise."

Ahsoka sighed heavily. "I hope you are right." She paused for a minute. "Hey, Bluestar. Have you've lost any of your memory after you've died?"

Bluestar flicked her tail nervously. "No. Some of the older spirits have, yes, but never a young one."

Bluestar studied Ahsoka for a moment. "Do you remember your life before coming here?"

Ahsoka thought for a minute then nodded. "I can remember everything before Kamino as clear as day."

"I think your losing your memory of your life here, because you _are_ dead," Bluestar explained. "But back in your own universe, you are still alive. I'm not sure why that is happening, but I think your soul is trying to forget your life here and move on."

"That...makes since," Ahsoka said putting her thoughts together. She then stood up. "Then I don't have much time. If I'm going to help the clans, I need to act fast. And I think I know what to do."


	23. Darkness's Pawn

The sun slowly made its way under the horizon. The faint red light burned in the sky, like it was stained with blood. The blood that would be shed tonight. Dooku stared at the sky. The end was upon them. He sighed heavily.

_I will leave this living hell after tonight. Tomorrow, I will wake up back in the Separatists Alliance. I will have my power back._

"Dooku, are you ready to head into ThunderClan territory?"

Dooku turned around to see Blackstar approaching him. He nodded in response.

"It's almost time for us to depart. Once that sun goes down, it is our time to strike." Dooku dug his claws into the ground. "Which warriors are we taking?" he suddenly asked.

"All the warriors that you, Grievous, and Asajj recommended," Blackstar's answered.

Dooku nodded in reply. "Good. What do you know about RiverClan?"

"I haven't heard from Mistystar yet. They should be here any minute now."

Dooku nodded again.

A deep silence filled the evening air as both Dooku and Blackstar watched the remainder of the sunset. It then disappeared of the horizon, leaving nothing but darkness. Blackstar looked up at the stars.

"StarClan, help us all," he prayed quietly.

Dooku then stood up.

The battle had begun.

* * *

Anakin walked quietly in the dark forest of ThunderClan territory, his senses on their ends. All he could sense where the ThunderClan warriors at his side, no sign of ShadowClan or RiverClan warriors. Which made him anxious.

Before they had set out, Firestar had had divided everyone into four different battle groups. Two good sized groups of the most experience warriors in ThunderClan, along with a group of WindClan's most talented warriors, would split up and patrol the regions near the ShadowClan boarder. Since Firestar had no idea where Blackstar would plan to attack, he decided to put a battle patrol at every possible entry for an ambush.

WindClan's group, lead by Onestar, where position at the edge of the lake. The first ThunderClan patrol, Obi-Wan's patrol, was sent to the middle of the territorial border and the group Anakin was leading was positioned at the northern part of the border, near the abandon Twoleg's place. The remaining ThunderClan warriors, including Firestar himself, stayed in camp in case anyone tried to ambush the camp.

Which wouldn't happen, not if Anakin had a say in it.

He had made a promise to Ivypaw that Ahsoka will be avenged, that ThunderClan would not be harmed. That the Separatists would fall, not only in this world but in his world as well.

_The end is tonight. Once I slay Dooku, I'll present his broken body to everyone. Every scum of the universe will know that to kill a Jedi means pain and death. _

"Anakin, are you alright?"

Anakin blinked and turned to see Brambleclaw giving him a concerned look.

Anakin nodded. "I am. Just thinking hard about something. Don't worry; I'll be able to fight."

Anakin walked ahead of him, not even waiting for Brambleclaw to respond. They then reached the border.

_And now the only thing to do now is wait._

Anakin turned to his warriors. "Hide somewhere dark so that they can't see us," he ordered. "We want to catch the ShadowClan warriors by surprise. Don't attack or do a thing until I give the signal, you understand?"

Brambleclaw and the rest of the warriors gave a nod in reply. However two of them, Thornclaw and Spiderleg, gave cold looks. Anakin knew they didn't like to be ordered by him, but they had to suck it up.

Everyone went into their hiding place, each all hidden in the darkness. Not even their own allies could see them. Anakin climbed up a tree and laid down on a high branch. He could see all the area around him and would be able to see any ShadowClan or even RiverClan warriors. Hopefully, Dooku would be among them.

As he waited in the tree, he wondered if Hollyleaf would be here. Would she fight like she promised or do nothing? Anakin sunk his claws into the bark of the tree.

_She better not betray us… _

Anakin swished his tail back and forth.

Waiting, he had always hated waiting. But this is the hardest wait he had to ever do.

* * *

"Any signs of ShadowClan or RiverClan?" Obi-Wan asked as he approached Squirrelflight who was watching the bordered.

She turned to him and shook her head. "Not yet. But they should be here any time now. ShadowClan likes to attack in the darkness, so it wouldn't surprise me they wouldn't try to attack when it is completely dark."

Obi-Wan nodded.

"Is everyone set up?" Squirrelflight suddenly asked.

"Yes, everyone is anxiously waiting for the signal," Obi-Wan answered. "Though, I hope we never have to fight. I wish this battle could be avoided."

Squirrelflight sighed. "As do I."

The two then sat in silence, watching over the ShadowClan border. Darkness covered the trees of the black forest of ShadowClan, almost like it was a never ending fog of darkness. Obi-Wan felt a chill go down his spine.

Suddenly, a faint gleam came out of the black forest. They looked like a pair of eyes, its yellow gaze glaring down at Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan stood up, knowing who's eyes those belonged to.

Grievous walked out of the shadows, his eyes glowing in the moonlight. Cats soon came after him, each having a battle hungry look in their eyes. Squirrelflight stood up and unsheathed her claws while Obi-Wan took a step forward. Grievous stopped moving forward and signaled his warriors to stop. Some of them gave him a puzzled look but did as he commanded. Grievous approached Obi-Wan, his claws slowly unleashed.

"Obi-Wan, I was hoping to meet up with you before this battle occurred," Grievous said malevolently.

"As did I," Obi-Wan replied coolly.

Grievous growled. "Don't try to be clever! It will only make things worse for you."

His gaze darkened a bit.

"But I didn't just want to see you in battle, as we have done so many times before. I wanted to talk to you, make a treaty of some sort."

Obi-Wan blinked. What did Grievous just say? Out of all things he thought would never hear, Grievous proposing a treaty was on the top of the list.

_This is obviously a trap._

Obi-Wan turned to Squirrelflight. "Go back to the others," he whispered loud enough for only them to hear. "Get ready to fight."

Squirrelflight nodded and ran towards the others.

Obi-Wan turned back to Grievous. "Well, I'm listening."

Grievous sneered as if negotiating was killing him inside. But, he had a determined look in his eyes.

"I know that you don't want to lead the clans to war and you don't want to send them to their deaths," Grievous said. "I myself don't want to see the clans to destroy themselves either. We both know that the reason _why_ this battle is about to occur is because that _we_ are here and there for, we must end it."

Obi-Wan flicked his tail. He didn't like where this was going.

"You know what must be done if this conflict is going to end. One side needs to leave this world. If both the Jedi and the Separatists are here alive, the clans will suffer. But if one side or both sides die, the clans will return to peace, as they lived before." Grievous's eyes gleamed with blood lust. "So now we end this. Obi-Wan, I challenge you to a duel. If you fight me one-on-one, then no ShadowClan or ThunderClan cat here will be hurt. Refuse and the battle commences."

He took a step closer. "So, what will it be, Obi-Wan? Will you fight me or watch your clanmates die?"

Obi-Wan stood there stunned. "Grievous, no one has to die. Do you remember what was said? We have to work together to defeat the evil. There is a way to avoid the war, without any bloodshed."

Grievous narrowed his eyes. Obi-Wan knew Grievous knew what he was talking about.

"I will _never_ form an alliance with you! I rather drown in blood then join forces with you! Either you fight me to the death now, or I'll let my warriors will slaughter you!"

Obi-Wan tensed up. It didn't look like he was going to have much of a choice. He was about to except the duel until Squirrelflight and the rest of Obi-Wan's patrol showed up.

"Obi-Wan!" Squirrelflight cried.

Obi-Wan turned to her and the others. "Stand back. Don't do a thing until I tell you to."

"What?" Dustpelt questioned. "What are you doing, Jedi?"

Obi-Wan ignored him.

If anyone is going to die, he would rather it be Grievous or himself then the cats of the clans. Obi-Wan unsheathed his claws.

"Prepare to die, Grievous."

Grievous smiled. "I'm going to enjoy this."

The two foes stared at each other for a long moment. Both the ShadowClan and ThunderClan warriors watched with great interest, not knowing what to do. Then, both Obi-Wan and Grievous charged at each other, ready to kill.

* * *

Onestar ran as fast as he could through the mob of RiverClan warriors, his fur drenching with water. When he led his warriors to the border, out of nowhere the RiverClan cats came. They appeared out of the water, luring and dragging the WindClan warriors into their paws.

Onestar smacked his paw into the face of a RiverClan warrior, knocking them to the ground.

Not only was he fighting in unfamiliar territory, but he was fighting in a place where he could be easily killed if he wasn't careful.

Onestar growled and jumped onto on another RiverClan warrior. The RiverClan cat screeched as Onestar put his claws into her back. Getting his back paws onto solid ground, he put one front paw on her head and forced it down into the water. He could feel her strangling but he kept the pressure on. Once he knew she was weak, Onestar picked her up and threw her to the mainland, knocking her out cold.

Onestar panted heavily.

He didn't know how much more he could take from this.

He looked around the area, seeing how his warriors where doing. Crowfeather and Antpelt where backed to backed fighting a large number of RiverClan warriors. Heathertail, Gorsetail, Leaftail, and Harespring all had RiverClan and a few ShadowClan cats on their tails, being barely able to fight them. Breezepelt was fighting five RiverClan warriors at once, each of them barely wounded. Onestar ran over towards his clanmates, trying as hard as he could to help them.

But before he could even get a mouse tail's length towards them, a huge cat landed on top of him. Onestar grunted and looked up to see Blackstar.

He hissed. "Blackstar!"

The ShadowClan leader returned his gaze, his eyes filled with regret.

"I'm sorry, Onestar," he said. "But this has to be done. For the good of all of the clans."

Blackstar was about to strike but Onestar was able to doge just in time. The WindClan leader got onto his feet. Without a reply, Onestar leaped at Blackstar. The two cats hit the water, but continued to fight. Water and mud stained their fur as the two clan leaders did everything in their power to kill each other. Onestar slashed his claws into Blackstar's side while Blackstar pushed Onestar into the ground. But Onestar didn't stay down very long as he splashed some water into Blackstar's eyes, temporarily blinding him.

Which gave Onestar the chance to hit him with all he had. He charged into Blackstar. Once he was down, he stood on top of him, his paw on the back of his neck. Blackstar, whose head was underwater, tried to gasp for air. Onestar pressed even more pressure_. _

_I hate to do this, Blackstar, but you give me no choice. May StarClan be merciful on you._

Blackstar's movements became weaker, signaling that he was almost dead. But then, someone pushed Onestar off balanced, making him fall to the ground. He hit his head hard on a rock and his vision turned completely black.

* * *

Tigerstar watched the huge battle in ThunderClan play out at the Dark Forest, anger rising inside of him.

This wasn't supposed to happen!

This battle wasn't supposed to occur until he was completely sure the Separatists where loyal to him! Tigerstar flicked his tail back forth as he watched the fight between Obi-Wan and Grievous.

Why did this happen? What made Dooku want to bring the clans to war without talking to him first? It didn't make sense. Dooku didn't seem like the type of cat to just have random battles without a purpose.

_Unless...no, it can't be!_

"Oh, but it is, Tigerstar."

Tigerstar jumped up and faced his opponent. It was Mapleshade, standing ever so calmly. Tigerstar sneered.

"What do you want, Mapleshade?"

Mapleshade smirked. "Oh, not much. I was just coming to see how the battle was going."

She took a step closer, but then Tigerstar blocked her path. "What is going on, Mapleshade?" he questioned furiously. "I can tell you have something to do with this!"

Mapleshade chuckled. "Nothing escapes you, doesn't it, Tiger_claw_?"

Tigerstar let out a hiss of rage. "_Don't disrespect my name, Mapleshade!_ Or else you will suffer the consequences!"

"I'm afraid that can't happen. Because there is a _new_ leader of the Dark Forest. A leader that should have been appointed moons ago!"

Tigerstar blinked.

Had she gone completely mad?

Without a chance to react, someone attacked Tigerstar from behind. Though caught completely surprised, Tigerstar got himself free and tried to attack. But the attacker was quicker them him and pushed him towards a tree. Tigerstar hit the tree with his head. He fell to the ground, his head pulsing with pain.

But he quickly got up.

Tigerstar's vision was blurry, but he could just faintly make out where his enemies where. He leaped, claws unleashed. A loud laugh pierced through his ears.

"Oh, Tigerstar! Have you've lost your touch? Is this really the best you can do?"

Tigerstar growled, not quite sure where Mapleshade was. A huge shadow then came across is blurry vision. Claws scraped across his face, the blood going into his eyes, blinding him even more. Tigerstar hissed trying his hardest not the cry out in pain. His attacker looked at him straight in the eye. Tigerstar's eyes widened as he heard his voice.

"It is about time you let someone else get the glory, you fox-hearted badger!" Brokenstar sneered. "I'm going to enjoy watching you suffer. It will make up for all the times you've used me to do your dirty work."

"So your allowing Mapleshade to use you?" Tigerstar countered.

"Not quite. Because, unlike you, she is actually taking some action." Brokenstar turned to Mapleshade. "What should we do with him?"

"Have someone guard him, for now at least," Mapleshade ordered. "He may become useful to us later."

Tigerstar felt Brokenstar put a paw on his back. Being blind and unable to move, Tigerstar did nothing. There was nothing he could do. Tigerstar closed his already blind eyes.

What did Mapleshade plan to do?

* * *

Anakin continued to sit in the tree, desperately waiting for something to happen. His group and been waiting for at least for thirty minutes now, and not a single ShadowClan or RiverClan warrior had come this way. Anakin sighed heavily.

_Where could they be?_

Suddenly, Anakin heard a cry of pain. It was coming somewhere near the lake. Anakin's eyes widened.

They've already attacked!

"Everyone!" Anakin shouted leaping out of the tree. "The Separatists are already here! We need to head to the battle _now_!"

The ThunderClan cats came out of their hiding places. Though confused, they waited for Anakin's next order.

"Half of you go back to the camp in case it is attacked. Everyone else, follow me!"

Anakin ran towards the sound and half of his grouped followed behind him. Anakin hoped that the screamed did not come from Obi-Wan. He couldn't stand it if he lost Obi-Wan too.

* * *

Grievous let out a battle cry as he charged at Obi-Wan. Using all of his weight and speed, he tried to get on top of him. Though having many injuries earlier in the battle, Obi-Wan was still able to doge easily. He panted hard, trying his best to avoid Grievous.

Grievous let out a irritated hiss.

For most of the battle, Obi-Wan had been dogging him, only rarely attacking. Grievous could tell what his strategy was. He was waiting for Anakin or that other Jedi to show up. Or even Asajj, since she had said that she had talked to them.

_This is pointless_, Grievous said to himself. _If the Jedi aren't gone, how else are we going to stop Dooku?_

Rock's words rang faintly in Grievous's ears.

_"If you even remotely care about the clans or your lives in general, I suggest you all learn to work together and put the past behind you. Otherwise you will only help bring the down fall of the clans. And yourselves as well." _

_No! That can't happen! I won't allow it!_

Grievous charged at Obi-Wan again. He aimed at Obi-Wan's face but Obi-Wan blocked it with his paw and hit Grievous's face instead. Grievous flinched a bit but he quickly recovered. Try after try, he would continue to hit Obi-Wan, but he could never get a clean hit. Nothing he tried would work; his claws could barely touch the Jedi's orange fur.

Grievous finally stopped a bit, panting heavily as he looked down at the ground. He could feel the gazes of the ShadowClan and ThunderClan warriors. He felt slightly humiliated by it.

_Even in this world, Obi-Wan is the same little snake._

Obi-Wan approached Grievous. "Do you see how pointless this fighting is? If we just worked together, we can stop Dooku."

Confused looks appeared on the ShadowClan warrior's faces.

"'Stop Dooku?' What is he talking about?" one warriors asked.

Grievous's neck fur rose. He raised his head.

"Do you really think it is that easy? I'm sure you feel the same way as I do. We can _never_ work together, no matter where we are. Here or back home."

The warriors continued to give puzzled looks, but Obi-Wan and Grievous where ignoring them. It was like they weren't there anymore.

"I know it is hard, but it is for the best." Obi-Wan's gaze softened a bit. "I can tell you care for the ShadowClan warriors, like you where a part of them. You don't want them to get hurt or killed, do you Grievous?"

Grievous stiffened but said nothing.

"If you truly care for them, put _their_ needs ahead of your own," Obi-Wan continued. "Sacrifice your own grudges to save your friends. Asajj has, why can't you? Do you want to be like Dooku?"

Grievous's eyes widened.

Many emotions went through his mind at once, almost paralyzing him. He couldn't let go of the past, he could never forgive the Jedi for what they did to him! But, he couldn't let ShadowClan be a part of Dooku's game. The lake filled with blood appeared in Grievous's mind, along with the screams of the ShadowClan warriors. Grievous internally panicked.

_No!_

Without thinking, Grievous charged at Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan ran out of the way and Grievous tripped over a rock. He fell face first into a stream, water all over his face. Grievous tried to get the water out of his eyes and face. Only, it wasn't water in the stream.

It was blood.

His paws, face, and fur was covered in it as the blood flowed through the water. Grievous gasped. It was happening. The visions of the blood lake and his murdered victims came back into his mind.

"_No_!" Grievous suddenly screamed.

He had done it, his vision was coming true! He failed ShadowClan.

_StarClan, help me!_

* * *

Asajj paced back and forth in ShadowClan camp, anxiously waiting for any news.

What was going on? Who was winning? Did Dooku do anything crazy yet? Was Grievous alright? More and more questions appeared in Asajj's head. She growled furiously.

_This is stupid! I should be out there fighting and protecting then waiting in camp for something to happen! Why do I have to sit here while everyone else sacrifice themselves to fight?_

Asajj tensed up. This was going to drive her insane.

"Are you alright, Asajj?"

Asajj didn't even bother to look up as she knew that it was Flametail speaking to her.

"What do you think?" she snapped.

Flametail sat next to her. "It will be alright, I'm sure of it. We just need to be patient."

"Be patient? How can I be patient when everyone has chance of dying and I'm not doing anything to stop it!"

Flametail gave her a sympathetic look. Asajj hissed in response.

"If you want, you can go ahead and help Grievous," Flametail said. "No one is going to come here and if anything bad happens, there are plenty of warriors to guard the camp."

Asajj flicked her tail.

Suddenly, Rowanclaw and two other warriors ran into the camp. Water and blood was all over their pelts. And the worse of it was Blackstar, who was laying unconscious on Rowanclaw's back.

Asajj gasped.

"What happened?" Flametail asked as he ran to his father.

Rowanclaw sighed heavily.

"We were fighting WindClan near the lake and Onestar almost drowned Blackstar," the ShadowClan deputy explained. "He would have died if Mistystar hadn't pushed Onestar out of the way."

"Did he lose a life?" Flametail asked fear in his voice.

Rowanclaw shook his head. "No, but he is close though. I was lucky to be able to get him back here in time."

Flametail nodded and took Blackstar off his father's back. He then walked to the medicine cats' den with Rowanclaw at his side. The remaining cats in ShadowClan began to question the other warriors, wanting to know what was going on.

Asajj felt sick.

The battle was becoming more and more deadly as each second passed. Using the Force, Asajj tried to locate Grievous. She found out that he was at the ThunderClan border. She breathed heavily as she felt the fear, defeat, anger, and every other emotion Grievous was feeling. He was in pain, he needed help.

_Grievous!_

Without another word, Asajj ran as quick as she could to Grievous's location. She wasn't going to let him die.

_Grievous, hang in there_, she prayed silently. _I'm coming!_

* * *

Jayfeather sat in the medicine cats' den, anxiously waiting for one of his clanmates that where gravely injured to pass through. He knew it was only a matter of time until cats would start piling in, deathly injured or even dead.

"Briarlight," Jayfeather said to break the silence. "Do you see anyone coming?"

Briarlight was quiet for a moment and then replied, "Not yet. Everything is quiet."

"Who's guarding the camp?"

"Leafpool and Birchfall, the other remaining warriors are asleep in the warriors' den."

Jayfeather nodded.

At least it was peaceful here.

Jayfeather closed his eyes. Even though he was blind, closing his eyes made him feel more at peace. Though, he halved hoped that Rock would try to contact him, to tell him how to stop it. But nothing had work.

Suddenly, a blood shearing scream rang in his ears. Jayfeather's eyes opened. It was the same scream he heard in his vision! The one with the she-cat getting murdered.

Jayfeather gasped.

_No, it is going to happen! The she-cat is going to be murdered tonight!_

Jayfeather then got up. "Briarlight, I'm going out to the battle field."

"What? Jayfeather, are you serious?" Briarlight blocked his path.

"There is something I need to do, Briarlight," Jayfeather explained.

"But you can't just go out into a battle by yourself! What if you run into a ShadowClan or RiverClan warrior?"

"Don't worry, I'll be fine. I know exactly where I need to go."

Without waiting for a reply, Jayfeather ran out of the medicine cats' den. Running into the woods, he headed towards the place he saw the she-cat died at. He didn't know how, but he knew something was leading him towards it.

_I just hope I make it in time._

* * *

Obi-Wan stared at Grievous. He didn't know what to do.

After trying to attack him, Grievous had tripped and fell into the stream. He then began to twitched and stared at the bloody stream. It was as if nothing else mattered to him anymore.

Obi-Wan slowly approached him. "Grievous?" he asked softly.

As if pulled back into reality, Grievous launched himself at Obi-Wan, holding him down to the ground. Grievous put his paw on Obi-Wan's throat.

"You have done it now, Jedi," Grievous hissed. "I'm going to make you pay for what you have done!"

He put pressure on Obi-Wan's throat, chocking him slowly to make sure he had a slow, painful death. Obi-Wan tried to break free of Grievous's grip but the struggling only made things worse. He was going to die.

"_Obi-Wan_!"

Looking out the corner of his eye, Anakin and his group of warriors ran towards him. Anakin launched himself at Grievous, getting him off of him. The two started to fight and that gave Obi-Wan time to recover.

Brambleclaw then approached him. "What's going on?" he asked.

Gasping for air, Obi-Wan explained his and Grievous's duel. Once finished, he ordered Brambleclaw to keep the rest of the warriors out of this fight.

_This is just between us and the Separatists. The clans don't need to get involved._

As if he understood what was taking place, Brambleclaw did as he was asked and ordered the ThunderClan warriors to stay back. Someone in ShadowClan got the same idea and did the same thing.

Obi-Wan then turned back to Grievous and Anakin. Both of them where at each others' throats, clawing each others' fur without stop. They were going to kill themselves. Obi-Wan ran beside them, mincing their movements. They needed to be stopped.

"Anakin, Grievous!" he cried to get their attention.

But nothing worked, they wouldn't listen.

"_Grievous_!"

Obi-Wan turned and saw Asajj pushing her way through the ShadowClan warriors. She looked at Obi-Wan and then at Grievous and Anakin. She then ran towards the battle, desperately trying to break it up. She leaped onto Grievous, getting him away from Anakin. Now having the chance, Obi-Wan blocked Anakin's way to Grievous.

He glared at him. "Fighting isn't solving anything," he said. "Your just making it worse."

Anakin sneered. "Then how else are we going to end this?"

"By working together and defeating the true evil."

Obi-Wan turned back to Grievous and Asajj, who were having their own argument.

"I thought I told you to stay in ShadowClan camp!" Grievous shouted furiously.

Asajj narrowed her eyes. "I couldn't just sit back and let you and the clans fight without trying to help. I needed to help."

Her gaze softened.

"I knew you were hurt and I couldn't allow that happen. If something bad happened to you, I would never forgive myself."

Grievous continued to glare at Asajj. Mixed emotions flowed through his eyes, so mixed together that Obi-Wan couldn't tell what they were.

"The final stand has now arrived. The end is near."

Obi-Wan, Anakin, Grievous, and Asajj all turned to see Dooku walk out of the shadows. His eyes gleamed in the darkness, as if they became part of it. The ThunderClan and ShadowClan cats backed away even more. They knew something huge was about to happened. And it was going to end in bloodshed.

Obi-Wan growled. "Do you see what you have done, Dooku?" he demanded. "Are you satisfied?"

Dooku narrowed his eyes as he came closer. "No, not until I'm back home. Not until the clans are dead."

"And what will that accomplish?" Asajj stepped up to Dooku, rage burning in her eyes. "Does this make you feel any better? I don't care how insecure you are, you are going down! I will never forgive you!"

Dooku's tail flicked back and forth. "So you have fully betrayed me. I was afraid of this."

"Afraid of what? What has caused you to act this way?"

Dooku said nothing.

The two of them stared each other down, waiting for the other to make a move.

Finally, Asajj said, "Dooku, if we are all going to get out of here alive, we need to work together. I know it may destroy our pride, but it is the only way." She sheathed her claws. "Let the bloodshed end. We are all tired of it, and I know you are too."

Dooku stared at Asajj, unable to come up with a reply. He stood there completely frozen. No one could tell what he was thinking.

Asajj stood her ground, knowing this was the only way.

Suddenly, an icy wind blew through the trees. Everyone's fur stood on their ends. An evil laugh rang through the wind.

"You think it is that easy, Separatists?" a female voice demanded. "You think you can just turn into the good guy whenever you want? You are a Sith apprentice, a Separatists, Asajj Ventress. You are destine to be the villain and nothing you will ever do will change that."

Asajj hissed furiously. "Shut up and show yourself! What have you done to Dooku?"

A loud, maniacal laughter blew through the forest.

"What have I've done? I've just promised to bring him back to the world he belonged to. And I plan on keeping that promise once his role is fulfilled."

Obi-Wan gasped.

_"Rock didn't bring us here fully! One wants us to defend the clans, one wants us to destroy,"_ Dooku had said at the border between RiverClan and WindClan. _"We don't know if Rock would brings us back to Kamino! But Mapleshade will! She promised me... _The clans must die so I can live!_"_

Was this Mapleshade that Dooku was talking about?

"You've become quiet an annoyance, Asajj," Mapleshade continued. "For that, you need to be taken care of. You will die the death of a villain. In vain and in failure!"

A dark shadow appeared over the sky, block any source of light. It then made its way to Dooku, merging itself with him. Dooku twitched uncontrollably, screaming in pain. Asajj backed away, her eyes wide with fear. Dooku finally stopped twitching and stared at the ground, breathing heavily. He then lifted his head and blinked a couple of times.

His eyes turned from brown to bright amber. He smirked and laughed in a laugh that wasn't his own.

Dooku then ran to Asajj. He lifted his paw, his claws unsheathed, and cut across Asajj's throat.

Asajj fell to the ground, gasping for any bit of air as the blood ran down her throat.

"_Asajj_!" Grievous and Obi-Wan cried at the same time.

Anakin stood where he was, shocked. The ShadowClan warriors gasped and the ThunderClan warriors took a step closer, ready to attack.

Dooku's eyes returned to normal. He stared down at Asajj in horror.

"...Traitor..." Dooku whispered softly. "_I've_ become the traitor."

He screamed again and his eyes turned back into amber.

Mapleshade had taken full control of him.


	24. The Final Battle Part 1

Mapleshade looked down towards the ground, her eyes studying the body she had taken control of. She began to smile slightly as she started to laugh. Becoming louder and louder, Mapleshade's maniacal laughter rose. Her shrieks pierce through the night air that every cat would shiver in fear.

That was what Jayfeather felt as he stopped running.

That voice, it was unnatural. It didn't belong here.

Jayfeather walked through the crowed, knowing that he was close to the source. "What's going on?" he asked to no one in particular.

"I don't know," Mousewhisker explained fear rising in his voice. "One of the Separatists cats…he just _murdered_ one of his comrades. At least…I _think_ it's a tom… His voice keeps changing to a she-cat's voice…"

Jayfeather stiffened.

As if he was seeing this scene with his own eyes, Jayfeather could see Dooku standing in a pitch black forest. He was panting heavily, like he had just been running in a huge race. Suddenly, another cat appeared right next to him. She was an orange and white cat, her amber eyes gleaming. Mapleshade and Dooku's body slowly merged together. Dooku screamed while Mapleshade laughed.

"Who…are you?" Jayfeather demanded.

"Who are you, _what_ are you?"

Jayfeather was pulled back into reality as his sight lost again. But he knew he just saw the face of the true enemy.

Mapleshade laughed. "Who am I? Oh, I'm a long, forgotten enemy of the clans. Not that you would know anything about the clans' history, Jedi."

Anakin hissed and approached Mapleshade. "Look, I don't know what you are trying pull off, Dooku. But I won't be fooled by any sith mind game!"

Mapleshade smirked. "Sith mind game? I say, Jedi Anakin, you are most amusing. Just like your friend. Oh, what was her name…Ahsoka?"

Anakin's claws sunk into the ground.

"Don't you _dare_ insult her name!"

Mapleshade chuckled. "Well, if you are in such rage why not come and attack me. Come at me, Jedi, and kill the murderer of your fallen friend."

Anakin's fur rose.

"Don't be fooled by her tricks, Skywalker," Grievous advised. "She is leading you into a trap."

Anakin glared at him. "Shut up, Grievous! It's because of you Separatists that this happened!"

Grievous narrowed his eyes. "Then die in vain. As much as I want to see you Jedi die, I won't let it end like this."

Grievous pushed Anakin out of the way and walked towards Mapleshade.

"Where is Dooku, Dark Forest warrior? Did Tigerstar send you?"

Everyone, including Jayfeather, gasped at the mention of Tigerstar's name. Did the Separatists team up with Tigerstar?

_That doesn't surprise me_, Jayfeather thought.

Mapleshade laughed loudly.

"No. Tigerstar is too weak to actually succeed at something! He thinks he can control cats under their free will. But in order to have full power, one must be in _full _control of those cats' actions and thoughts. I'm far worse than Tigerstar and a far better ruler, I can assure you."

Grievous flicked his tail, obviously disturbed.

"What have you done with Dooku?"

"Why would I tell you that? It wouldn't be any fun that way."

Mapleshade walked pass Grievous, facing everyone.

"Cats of ThunderClan and ShadowClan! The end of your time is near! You will all pay for what you have done to the cats of the Dark Forest! Your blood will be spilled tonight!"

Suddenly, just like with Dooku, other cats started to twitch and scream. They're eyes would change and then join up with Mapleshade. A ShadowClan warrior, Ratscar, started to laugh.

"Ah, it feels _so_ good to be back in a body again!" Brokenstar exclaimed. "It is nice to see my clanmates again. Though, I'm sure none of you remember me."

"I agree."

Using Tigerheart's body, Hawkfrost spoke. He turns to Brambleclaw, who is completely shocked at his voice.

"Hello brother. It is so good to see you again," Hawkfrost said a bit of sarcasm in his voice.

Brambleclaw glared at him in reply.

Mapleshade laughed as more and more cats came to her side.

"Cats of the Dark Forest!" she screamed. "Attack!"

* * *

Tigerstar laid down where he was, forced to watch the battle from the Dark Forest. Though he enjoyed the terrified looks his enemies where making, it disturbed him _how_ it was being done.

Mapleshade was out of control.

She was doing something that Tigerstar himself would have never done. Taking control of a living cat's body and destroy their soul. The thought had come to him a couple of times, but he never tried it. It just seemed wrong, and it seemed even _more_ wrong watching someone do it.

He saw the warriors of both ShadowClan and ThunderClan back away from Mapleshade and her army. Even though their clanmates' bodies where under the control of evil spirits, they were not willing to hurt them. They where going to destroy themselves.

Tigerstar looked up at his guard, Darkstripe, who was watching the battle with glee. Tigerstar turned back onto the scene of the battle as he said, "I'm surprised you're not fighting, Darkstripe. I would have thought you of all cats would be down there."

Darkstripe glared darkly at Tigerstar. "Shut up, fox heart!" He hissed. "Do you want be to blinded you like Brokenstar did? Only this time permanent?"

Tigerstar flicked his tail and chuckled. "You do realize I can easily overpower you, Darkstripe? After all, I was your mentor."

"Hush!" Darkstripe scratched Tigerstar's cheek. "One more word out of you and you will know true pain!"

Tigerstar flicked his tail, not feeling threatened in the slightest. He could easily overpower Darkstripe, but he was in no shape for a huge fight with anyone else. All he could do was sit here and wait for his chance to fight.

_Watch out, Mapleshade. You haven't heard the last of me!_

* * *

Ahsoka ran towards the border between StarClan and the Dark Forest. She knew that Anakin, Obi-Wan, and the clans where in danger. She could feel the disturbance of the force.

_It has begun. The final battle has started!_

Ahsoka stopped moving when she approached the Dark Forest border. The fur on her back rose. She felt a great fear go over her. Though her death was getting harder and harder to remember with every second, the fear still lingered on. She shook her head violently_._

_I can't afford to be paralyzed by this! I have to keep moving._

Ahsoka took a deep breath and then entered the Dark Forest. She slowly moved between the fog and dark trees, each shadow making her jump. Ahsoka started to breathe heavily. She could feel the darkness all around her. It was coming after her, consuming her.

But, she kept going.

She needed to find stop the source of evil from its roots.

She needed to destroy the Dark Forest.

_I'm doing the impossible by destroying hell, but I have to try or die again trying._

"Ahoska, is that you?"

Ahsoka jumped and turned to see..._Asajj_! She stared blankly at the dark assassin. What was she doing here? Ahsoka noticed that she had a huge cut on her neck, dried blood all over it.

She gasped. "You...are not dead too?"

Asajj turned away from her gaze.

"I know." She sighed heavily. "I can't believe I allowed this to happen! I should have seen that coming!"

"Allow what?"

Asajj looked up at Ahsoka, confusion in her eyes.

"What do you mean? Haven't you seen the huge battle?"

Ahsoka shook her head. "I haven't had time to look at it. I've been too busy trying to stop it, as I don't have much time."

Ahsoka then explained about her memory loss and how she was going to forget everything that had happened to her in ThunderClan. When she finished, Asajj gave a look of shock.

Suddenly, Asajj violently struck at a tree, her claws tearing into the bark.

Ahsoka unsheathed her claws.

"No, I can't forget! I don't want to forget! I..."

Tears ran down Asajj's face.

Ahsoka stared at her puzzled. A part of her wanted to ask what was wrong, but she needed to make sure if Asajj was an ally or not.

"What was going on in the battle before you...died?" Ahsoka finally asked.

Taking a deep breath, Asajj explained everything that had happened in great detail. Including her own death.

"I then woke up here in the Dark Forest," Asajj concluded. "I don't know how long I've been here, but I'm trying to find a way back to the world of the living. I will not go down with out a fight!"

She looked up at Ahsoka.

"What are you doing here anyway?"

"I'm looking for a way to destroy the Dark Forest," Ahsoka answered. "Or find away to stop the evil spirits once and for all."

Asajj paused for a minute and then nodded. The desire for revenge glowed in her eyes.

"Follow me, Jedi. I think I know what to do."

* * *

The cats of the Dark Forest charged at the clan cats, not having any second thoughts as to what they were doing. Not having any other choice, the clan cats attacked their possessed clanmates. They all collided, showing each other no mercy.

Anakin moved passed between each Dark Forest and clan cat. He was looking for Dooku. He didn't fully believe he was possessed, but he knew he was the key. He knew that if the leader was killed, all of this would end.

_The_ _sooner that he is dead, the less blood will be spilled._

Sometimes, a cat would try to attack him but Anakin would use the force to knock them out.

Then suddenly, in the mist of all of the chaos, Dooku's form appeared.

He was on top of Squirrelflight, about to kill her. Anakin then ran forward and pushed him of her. They rolled down a hill, both of them desperately trying to kill each other. To Anakin's surprise, he was a lot stronger then he seemed. His amber eyes gleamed into his blue ones.

"So, Anakin, is this the best you can do?" Mapleshade taunted. "You will be easier prey then Ahsoka was. Pity, I was hoping for a challenge."

Snapping completely, Anakin jumped and took Mapleshade by surprise. He tried to snap her neck but Mapleshade was swift and ended up slapping him across the face.

But Anakin didn't even flinch.

Going behind Mapleshade, he was able to leap onto her back. Mapleshade screamed as she couldn't handle all of his weight on her back. She fell to the ground, trying to get back up. Anakin started to crush her back. Mapleshade gasped a bit, but she started to smirk.

"You know, it's so ironic that you say the Separatists are evil incarnate, when you're no different. Just look at yourself right now. Murdering a cat who wasn't in the greatest of mental health. What makes you any better than him, Grievous, or Asajj?"

Anakin added more pressure.

"They kill without honor or reason. They are murders. I'm only killing you, Dooku or whoever you are, because you have killed Ahsoka and God knows how many others. I'm doing this for justice."

"So was I when I was alive," Mapleshade countered. "I was giving myself justice for destroying the kin of the cats that have treated me wrong. Tell me how's that different from what you are doing?"

Anakin didn't reply.

Mapleshade smiled. "That's what I thought."

She then slipped under Anakin's grip and slammed herself against his side. Anakin quickly dogged and tried to get behind Mapleshade again.

Mapleshade laughed at his effort.

Move after move. Strike after strike, Anakin couldn't get one hit. But neither could Mapleshade. They were evenly match, their anger rising at every second.

Suddenly, someone got on top of Anakin.

Brokenstar made Ratscar put his huge paw on Anakin's throat. His yellow eyes gleamed with evil as more pressure was added. More cats made their way down there, their fur bloody and matted. Anakin scratched Brokenstar's throat, injuring him a bit. As he fell back Anakin quickly stood up. He then looked around to see that Mapleshade was gone.

Anakin cursed.

_You can't hide forever! I _will _find you and kill you, Dooku!_

* * *

Mapleshade ran away from the battle as fast as she could, trying to get as far as possible. She needed to keep her distance, to lure the Jedi or Grievous out into the open. It would be easier to kill them with few cats in the area. With them dead, the clans won't stand a chance of surviving.

_Their nonclan leaders are the only thing that is giving them hope. Until all six of them are dead, I will be one step behind._

She scanned the area for any signs of them.

Suddenly, she saw someone approach her from behind.

It was Jayfeather.

"You know that you are doomed to fail. The cats you have control won't sit by while you make them kill their own clanmates."

Mapleshade turned to Jayfeather. "What makes you so sure, medicine cat? I know you're not like any ordinary medicine cat, but even you can see how hopeless it is."

Jayfeather's whiskers twitched, his blind eyes staring straight at her.

"You obviously have underestimated us. ThunderClan will always fight together, no matter what the battle is. You, or anyone from the Dark Forest, can't stop it. We will defeat you."

Mapleshade hissed enraged.

She then tackled Jayfeather knocking him and herself to the ground.

"You will regret leaving you protected camp!" she threatened.

Jayfeather quickly got up and tried to fight back. But with his blindness, he couldn't see where Mapleshade was. Mapleshade took every advantage of that weakness. She attacked every opportunity she got. Jayfeather cried in pain, blood staining his pelt. He panted heavily.

"Do you give up?" Mapleshade demanded. "Surrender and I may have some use for you. A powerful cat like you can't go wasted."

"...N-never!"

Mapleshade sighed.

She then prepared for the killing blow no regret in her eyes.

In the distance, Obi-Wan saw what was happening. He knocked out one of the Dark Forest cats and ran towards Jayfeather.

"Jayfeather!" Obi-Wan shouted.

Jayfeather and Mapleshade looked up. Jayfeather got out of Obi-Wan's way while Mapleshade stood her ground. Obi-Wan ran into her and made her fall.

Obi-Wan then turned to Jayfeather. "Are you alright?"

Jayfeather nodded slowly. "Yes, but don't worry about me. I can take care of myself."

Jayfeather limped as he tried leave. Obi-Wan ran up to him.

"You're hurt. Let me help you get to safety."

Jayfeather growled. "I don't need any help! I can get back on my own just-"

"Jayfeather!" Lionblaze ran towards his brother, who leaned to his side.

"He's been badly injured by Dooku. Take him to safety," Obi-Wan ordered.

Lionblaze nodded and he lead his brother away.

Once they were out of sight, Obi-Wan turned to Mapleshade.

But she was running away, going deeper into the woods. Obi-Wan quickly picked up speed and chased after her.


	25. The Final Battle Part 2

Asajj and Ahsoka moved quickly through the Dark Forest, trying their best to stay hidden in the darkness. Ahsoka tensed up, wondering where Asajj was leading her. She couldn't help it, but she felt like she couldn't trust Asajj. There was something about her that made her wary_. _

_How does she know her way through the Dark Forest anyway? Could she have been training her has I have?_

Ahsoka dared not ask.

The last thing she could do was make one more enemy.

Suddenly, Asajj stopped walking and Ahsoka almost ran into her. She backed up a little as she asked, "What is it?"

"I see two cats," Asajj answered quietly. "It looks like one of them is imprisoned by the other. But why would they do that?"

Ahsoka looked passed Asajj. Her eyes widened as she recognized Tigerstar who was laying on the ground. The gray and black striped cat she did not recognized, but she knew he was holding Tigerstar prisoner.

_But isn't Tigerstar the ruler of the Dark Forest? If he's not the one leading the assault on the clans, then _who_ is?_

"Stay where you are," Asajj suddenly said. "And don't move until I tell you to, understand?"

Ahsoka gave a puzzled look but she nodded in response.

Asajj then got up and walked towards Tigerstar and his capturer. Both cats turned to Asajj. She smirked.

"Darkstripe, I'm surprised you're the one holding Tigerstar. I would have thought they would have sent someone stronger to hold him."

Darkstripe growled and took a step closer to Asajj.

"Don't underestimate me, Separatists!" he threatened softly. "I am a warrior of the Dark Forest. I can easily kill you."

Asajj chuckled softly. "Is that why your true leader kept you here as a guard dog? Because you where too weak to take control of a living cat's body? If that's the case, I can't blame her for keeping you here. This does seem like your only use."

Darkstripe unsheathed his claws, anger flowing through his eyes.

"I can easily take over the mind of any cat I want, including the 'great leader' Firestar! Or even better…I could take over one of your friends. Let's say, Grievous for example."

Asajj hissed furiously. She then jumped onto Darkstripe, pinning him down to the ground.

She laughed.

"Don't _underestimate_ me! Like you, I've been perfecting the art of killing. Now, unless you want to join my other victims, I suggest you start cooperating."

Darkstripe nodded in agreement, fear glowing on his face. Ahsoka felt disgusted how quickly he switched sides.

Asajj smiled. "Good. At least you know your place."

Darkstripe hissed.

"Now, tell me who possessed Dooku's body. Who is this cat?"

"Her name is Mapleshade," Tigerstar answered flicking his tail back and forth. "She is one of the older spirits in the Dark Forest. No one knows much about her since she usually keeps her distance. But lately, she has been very active in our training. I didn't think much of it, since I didn't expect that someone would be foolish enough to overthrow me."

He then stood up and walked towards Darkstripe. He gave a twisted grin.

"Now, Darkstripe. Tell us what are Mapleshade's plans are. If you lie or don't say anything, my friend here will kill you."

"I'm not your friend!" Asajj hissed. "I don't take orders from you! Unless you want to end up like _your_ friend here, I suggest you keep quiet!"

Tigerstar narrowed his eyes.

"I see you still have that silver tongue of yours from when we first met. Very well, I'll let you handle this."

He took a step back.

Asajj gave a look of annoyance and turned back to Darkstripe.

"Now, speak!"

She put her paw on his throat.

Darkstripe stiffened as he said, "Alright. A few sunrises ago, when none of us had apprentices to train, Mapleshade would approach us and asked us if we liked Tigerstar's leadership. She would question us if we were in the right position, if we were treated right by Tigerstar. If Tigerstar was strong enough or _worthy_ enough for the honor of destroying the clans."

"Which cats did she approach?" Asajj asked.

"Any cat with commanding power, like Brokenstar and Thistleclaw or any cat close to Tigerstar."

"Like my son," Tigerstar commented in a low voice.

Darkstripe nodded.

"Hawkfrost wasn't easy to convert, but Mapleshade had somehow convinced him to join her."

Tigerstar dug his claws into the ground. "That fox-heart! I won't forgive her for messing with my kin!"

Asajj narrowed her eyes at Tigerstar then turned back to Darkstripe.

"How many cats are on Mapleshade's side?" Asajj questioned.

"A good amount. Though there are some cats here that don't care about the land of the living. But they won't help you; they refuse to even acknowledge us. Anyway, when she gathered enough followers, Mapleshade came up with a plan to destroy the clans. In return for our help, she promised us that we would be reborn again."

"'Reborn again?' How is that possible?"

Asajj turned to Tigerstar, who looked just as confused.

"I don't know what he is talking about," Tigerstar said. "As long as I've been here, I've never heard or found a way to be reborn. I know StarClan can give cats a second chance at life, but we don't have the same abilities as StarClan cats."

His eyes darkened.

"…But apparently, Mapleshade has found a way."

"She has, but she won't tell us how until the job is complete," Darkstripe explained. "But she _did_ tell us how to take over the minds of living cats. That was something you did know about, didn't you, Tigerstar?"

Tigerstar flicked his tail and narrowed his eyes.

"I found that secret when I found out how to visit my sons in their dreams. But even I have standards and I won't do something as risky as that."

"How is it risky?" Asajj asked curiously. "Is it that difficult to do?"

Tigerstar shook his head.

"No. In fact, it is a very easy thing to do. All you have to do is find a cat whose mental strength is weaker than yours, come into the world of the living and enter their body. From there, you can weaken their soul even more from the inside and use their body as long as you like."

Tigerstar's eyes darkened as he continued to talk.

"However, there is a big catch involved. When you enter that cat's body, your soul and their soul entwine with each other. Your souls literally merge into one. What happens to one soul happens to the other. If the soul of that body dies and you're in it, your soul is destroyed forever. Because of this, different side effects can happen."

"Like what?"

"There are two effects that can happen when you leave your host's body. One is that your spirits are still connected and you have a spiritual bond with them. You can feel what they feel, know what they are thinking, talk to them mentally, and both souls can control the other's thinking pattern. But that is the least threatening one.

"The last one is when both of your souls merge together. Your personality, your memories, your identity turn into one. You can't leave that body and you're no longer your own person. The more different the personalities are, the worse the effect is."

Asajj's eyes widened.

"How common are these side effects?"

"I don't know, because not many cats have tried it. My guess is that it isn't common, but it can happen in a split second."

Asajj stayed silent.

The risks where even higher than they were before. Dooku and the rest of the cats that had been possessed have the chance of having their souls destroyed. And there was nothing Asajj could do to help them.

Or was there?

Ahsoka then left her hiding place and approached the others. Tigerstar gave a look of surprise when he saw Ahsoka's face. Asajj glared at her but said nothing.

"Tigerstar, there must be a way to save them," Ahsoka said. "There must be something you can do."

Tigerstar avoided her gaze.

"I hate to admit it, but there isn't much I can do without possessing some myself, same thing with you two. The only thing we can do is interact with the surroundings of the battle and hope it will help."

"Wait, _you're_ helping us?" Asajj questioned. "I thought you want the clans to die?"

"Not exactly," Tigerstar answered. "I just want revenge on the cats who wronged me in the past. The clans can still live for all I care, but with cats I approve of."

_Still sounds wrong_, Ahsoka commented to herself.

"So…now that you have had your information...could you possible let me go? I can help too."

Asajj and Tigerstar glared down at Darkstripe.

"Just let him go, he's not worth it," Ahsoka said coldly. "From what I've seen of his character, he won't dare possess a cat now he knows the side effects. I doubt he would get in the way now."

Tigerstar and Asajj turned to each other then back at Darkstripe. With a heavy sigh, Asajj let him go. Darkstripe quickly got up and ran away, not even thanking her for mercy.

_Not like I expect it._

Asajj turned to Tigerstar. "So, now that we are 'partners,' what is exactly the plan?"

"I have a plan that _will_ work, but I can only do it if you two trust me."

Tigerstar put his right paw in front of him, as if signaling a truce.

Asajj glared at him.

"I'm only allying with you because I have no choice. But I swear, if you double cross me, I _will_ kill you without a second thought! I don't care _who_ you possess, you _will_ pay."

She put her right paw next to Tigerstar's.

They both turned to Ahsoka, waiting for an answered.

Ahsoka closed her eyes.

_I told myself I would never mess or linger in the Dark Side. But it looks like I have little choice. Please forgive me, master._

She put her right paw next to Asajj and Tigerstar's.

"As a Jedi, it is my duty to save people from darkness and evil," Ahsoka said solemnly. "I will do whatever it takes to save the cats of the clans!"

* * *

Lionblaze dragged Jayfeather through the battle field, desperately trying to reach ThunderClan camp. Dogging every cat he could see, Lionblaze moved as fast as he could. He looked down at Jayfeather, who was barely conscious.

"Stay with me, Jayfeather," Lionblaze said softly. "We are almost at camp. Just a little further."

Jayfeather let his brother guide him, too weak to protest.

They finally arrived at camp. Lionblaze's eyes widened in shock as he saw so many cats near the medicine cats' den. Brightheart, Leafpool, and Briarlight where moving around the injured cats, both WindClan and ThunderClan, treating them with everything they could.

One of the cats among them was Onestar.

As Lionblaze entered the camp, Leafpool saw them and she gasped.

"Lionblaze, what happened?" she cried running towards her two sons.

Lionblaze sat Jayfeather next to the other injured cats.

"I'm not that sure," he explained. "I found him almost ready to pass out. I came here as quickly as possible."

Leafpool nodded and checked Jayfeather's wounds. "I'll be able to treat them. Hopefully, no more cats will get injured."

Lionblaze nodded in agreement, even though part of him knew that it was only going to get much worse from here. He then turned his gaze to Onestar.

"How is Onestar doing? Has he lost a life?" Lionblaze asked.

"Brightheart took a look at him earlier. He hasn't lost a life yet but we're keeping an eye on him."

She looked into Lionblaze's eyes.

"Go ahead and get back into the battle. I'll make sure Jayfeather is alright."

Even though he was reluctant to leave his brother, Lionblaze nodded and rushed towards the edge of camp. As he ran, he glanced over at the apprentices' den.

"Leafpool, where are Ivypaw and Dovepaw?"

Leafpool looked up. "I don't know. Aren't they in their den?"

Lionblaze's eyes widened.

_I told them to stay in camp! Who knows what those Dark Forest cats could do to them?_

Lionblaze then dashed out of camp, hoping that Ivypaw and Dovepaw were out of harm's way.

* * *

Ivypaw felt like someone was screaming in her head as she felt a dark spirit try to enter her mind. She knew a cat from the Dark Forest was trying to take over her body, but she won't let them! She couldn't let them use her body to kill her clanmates, not without a fight.

"Ivypaw, what's wrong?" Dovepaw asked noticing her sister's discomfort.

Ivypaw stopped walking forced herself to smile.

"I'm fine, just nervous and tired. Come, we need to find some Dark Forest cats."

Ivypaw moved quickly passed her sister, not even waiting for a reply.

True her intention was to fight the Dark Forest cats, but she had another intention as well. One that she did not want to reveal to her sister, as she would never approve_._

_ I don't know how much time I have left, but I hope I can last long enough to find Obi-Wan or Anakin. They will know what to do._

Suddenly out of the corner of her eye, Ivypaw saw a figure run through the forest. Another figure could be seen chasing after the first one, his speed trying to match the other's. Dovepaw rushed to Ivypaw's side.

"It's Obi-Wan!" she cried. "And I think he was chasing Dooku! Well, the other cat match the description I've heard about Dooku..."

Ivypaw narrowed her eyes.

"And how exactly did you know that?"

Dovepaw tensed up.

"I...err...just could see them clearer."

Ivypaw flicked her tail but didn't question it.

"If that is Dooku, Obi-Wan will need all the help he can get. We need to go after them!"

Dovepaw nodded and the two sister ran after Obi-Wan and Mapleshade. Even though Ivypaw had no idea where they went, Dovepaw on the other hand did. Reluctantly, Ivypaw followed Dovepaw.

_How does she know where she is going? What makes her so special?_

At that thought, Ivypaw could feel the other presence in her body become stronger.

_I have to hurry!_

Finally, Dovepaw and Ivypaw caught up to Obi-Wan and Mapleshade.

The two cats where facing each other, as if neither one was willing to attack first. Dovepaw put her tail in front of Ivypaw, as they hadn't been seen yet. Ivypaw turned to Dovepaw, who was watching them carefully. Getting the hint, Ivypaw watched them too.

_Hopefully, this won't take too long. I can't fight this spirit much longer! _

"What do you want, evil spirit?" Obi-Wan asked trying his best to keep his voice calm. "Why do you want the clans dead, Mapleshade?"

Ivypaw gasped.

Mapleshade's eyes widened at the sound of her name.

"Interesting...you Jedi are smarter then you look. But, it doesn't matter, as you know little about me."

"That's is what I'm trying to find out," Obi-Wan explained. "Without bloodshed."

Mapleshade laughed.

"That's a useless tactic! Look around you, Jedi. Death is all around you! Every cat you see and hear will die before the sun rises! There is no way around it, you're just fooling yourself."

Mapleshade unsheathed Dooku's bloodstained claws.

"If you want to help the clans, you're going to have to fight."

Obi-Wan narrowed his eyes.

"No," he said softly, "no I don't. I don't have to fight to win battles. It is not the Jedi way. In fact, those who look for fights are the ones that end up losing."

He took a step closer to Mapleshade.

"As for you, my dear, you are the one who will end up dying. Because you are too blind by evil to see pass the truth. You. Are. Nothing."

Mapleshade hissed furiously. She then charged at Obi-Wan but he simply dogged her attack. Caught by surprise, Mapleshade attacked again. Obi-Wan dogged again. They repeated this process until Mapleshade panted with exhaustion.

"What Jayfeather said was true," Obi-Wan said looking down at her. "ThunderClan will always fight together, even if you brainwashed half of their clanmates. ShadowClan, RiverClan, and WindClan are the same way. Together, the clans are unstoppable."

Mapleshade stood where she was, not making a sound. Ivypaw, Dovepaw, and Obi-Wan watched her. Ivypaw tensed up a bit.

_Is she..._listening_ to him? Is she...going to _surrender_?_

A moment of silence fell between them.

Suddenly, Mapleshade laughed at the top of her lungs.

She then turned to Obi-Wan and pounced on him. Catching him off guard, Obi-Wan fell and Mapleshade stood on top of him. She chuckled, madness and hatred gleaming from her eyes.

"Time to die, Jedi Obi-Wan!"

She sank her claws into his heart.

Obi-Wan's eyes widened, gasping for breath. Ivypaw and Dovepaw froze in horror. They were too shocked by Mapleshade's action that they didn't know what to do.

"_Obi-Wan_!"

Dovepaw and Ivypaw turned to see Anakin run out of the forest.

He slammed himself into Mapleshade, saving Obi-Wan just in time. Mapleshade lost her balance and she fell into a hole covered in leaves and lose ground. Anakin and Mapleshade caught the edge of the hole, their claws sliding downward as they hung on for dear life. They both looked down to see nothing but darkness.

Anakin tried to climb up but he felt someone grab his leg. He looked down and saw Mapleshade had a hold of him. She grinned wickedly as she pulled Anakin down. Anakin hissed having no way to fight back. Obi-Wan then appeared at the edge and lowered his paw down.

"Anakin, take my paw!" Obi-Wan cried despertly.

Anakin lifted his paw towards Obi-Wan's. Their claws connected and Obi-Wan started to pull him up.

But Mapleshade still had her hold on Anakin, and she still pulled him even harder. With her extra weight and resistance, Obi-Wan's grip was starting to loosen and he was being pulled down as well. Obi-Wan tried to resist but Mapleshade's strength was too much as he was still weak from her last attack. Anakin noticed it and he knew there was no way Obi-Wan could get them out of this.

There was one thing he could do.

_If I'm going down, I'm taking Dooku with me! And this is the perfect opportunity. _

"Obi-Wan!"

Obi-Wan looked into Anakin's eyes.

"Obi-Wan, I will take down Dooku whatever it takes," Anakin said solemnly. "You don't have the strength to pull us both up and I won't allow Dooku another chance to escape me."

He smiled slightly.

"Take care, master. I will fight along with you in spirit"

He then let go of Obi-Wan completely.

Mapleshade gasped as she and Anakin fell into the abyss of darkness.


	26. The Final Battle Part 3

"_Anakin_!"

Obi-Wan fell to the ground, tears running down his eyes. Ivypaw and Dovepaw stared at Obi-Wan. They couldn't believe what just happened.

_Anakin..._

Ivypaw faced the ground, trying to hold back her screams. She couldn't take it anymore.

The Dark Forest spirit was taking over.

"Ivypaw!" Dovepaw cried as she studied her sister. "What's wrong?"

"Ivypaw, Dovepaw?"

Obi-Wan approached the two apprentices, tears still in his eyes.

Ivypaw looked up at Obi-Wan with the little strength she has left.

"...Obi-Wan, I'm about to be taken over by a Dark Forest cat," she muttered weakly. "Help me..."

Dovepaw gasped. "Ivypaw! Why didn't you say anything? I could have helped you!"

Ivypaw chuckled.

"No, you couldn't."

She cringed.

"_Obi-Wan_!"

"Stay calm, Ivypaw," Obi-Wan whispered in her ear. "I won't let anything happened to you."

Obi-Wan stared at Ivypaw as the light in her eyes became duller and duller. He didn't know what to do.

How could he stop a spirit?

_"Obi-Wan, can you hear me?"_

Obi-Wan's eyes widened.

That voice...it couldn't be!

_Ahsoka? _

_"Yes!"_

Ahsoka's ghostly figured appeared right next to Obi-Wan. Dovepaw flinched back a bit.

"There is a way to save Ivypaw," Ahoska said. "It is a bit of a risk, for me and for her, but it may be the only way."

"W-what are you talking about?" Dovepaw asked frightened.

"I'm going to enter Ivypaw's body and see if I can kick the evil spirit out," Ahsoka explained. "I don't know what will happen with three spirits trapped in one body, but I can't think of anything else we can do."

Ahsoka glanced over at Obi-Wan, as if asking for his approval. Obi-Wan nodded slowly in reply. Ahsoka then turned to Ivypaw.

"Try to relax. Let the dark spirit takeover so I can have an easier time fighting it."

Ivypaw nodded and closed her eyes. She began to twitch wildly, but Ivypaw refused to back out. She then reopened her eyes, now where a bright amber. At that same second, Ahsoka merged herself into Ivypaw's body. Ivypaw screamed in pain, her eyes shifting colors. From amber to blue and back. Obi-Wan and Dovepaw watched in silence, knowing that there was nothing that they could do. Obi-Wan closed his eyes.

_Ahsoka, please save Ivypaw. The last thing we need is more death._

Suddenly, a huge black spirit was thrown out of Ivypaw's body. The Dark Forest warrior fell to the ground, slowly trying to get back up. In that same instant, Obi-Wan ran towards to the Dark Forest warrior and used the force to kill him. The Dark Forest warrior turned into smoke, his body fading out of existence.

Obi-Wan panted heavily, his legs shaking underneath him. He glanced back at Dovepaw, who was helping Ivypaw up. Ivypaw barely had her eyes opened, looking as if she could pass out at any possible second.

"Ivypaw, hang in there," Dovepaw whispered to her sister. "We'll be back at camp soon, I promise."

Obi-Wan then saw Ahsoka walking slowly towards him, looks just as exhausted as Ivypaw.

"Are you alright?"

Ahsoka smiled slightly. "I'm fine. It was...a very painful experience to say the least. I don't know how many times I can do it, but I'll try to save as many cats as I can."

"How did you get here?" Obi-Wan suddenly asked. "How did you really...die?"

Ahsoka's eyes darkened.

"I was murdered in the Dark Forest, by Dooku. Though, knowing what happened to him, I can't help but feel a bit sorry for him."

"What do you mean by that?"

Quickly, Ahsoka explained to Obi-Wan what happened in the Dark Forest. Obi-Wan had a hard time following, but he seemed to get the main concept of it.

"So, Asajj and Tigerstar are here as well, doing exactly what you are doing?"

"That, or finding a way to help you the clans," Ahsoka answered.

Obi-Wan nodded.

"Alright, see if you can get rid of the dark sprits like you did with Ivypaw while I make sure she and Dovepaw get back to camp safely. Try to do as much as you can but don't over work yourself. I don't want you to die again."

Ahsoka nodded and then ran into battle.

Obi-Wan turned back to Dovepaw and Ivypaw.

"Go ahead and run back to camp," he instructed them. "I'll watch over you and don't worry about fighting."

Dovepaw nodded solemnly and took off with an unconscious Ivypaw on her back. Obi-Wan ran by their sides, making sure nothing evil came their way.

He was not going to let another cat die because of this battle.

* * *

Mapleshade slowly opened her eyes. She felt like she had been asleep for moons. She groaned as she felt something heavy crushing her back. She tried to get up but the weight was too much.

Mapleshade grunted in pain.

Beside her, she could feel something wet drenching her fur. Was it water or was it...blood?

Using all of her strength, plus Dooku's, she trying to pull herself free. But something kept holding her back, like an invisible force was holding her down. Mapleshade hissed in frustration. She finally broke herself free. She turned to see that the thing that was holding her back was Anakin.

Mapleshade studied him, making sure he was dead. She could see a small pool of blood around Anakin's head, suggesting that he must have hit his head on a sharp rock, killing him instantly. Mapleshade smirked.

_Foolish Jedi. You wouldn't have died like this if you had just let me finish off your friend. How pathetic._

Mapleshade then looked around. She was inside of some kind of dark cave that looked like it went on forever. Mapleshade started to walk in a direction when suddenly, a lone cat approached her.

"You may not pass," Fallen Leaves said firmly. "I won't allow you to leave."

Mapleshade laughed.

"And just who do you think you are? A lost spirit? Not a surprise one would be down here. But, it matters not. Get out of my way and I won't have to kill you."

Fallen Leaves flinched back, surprised on how feminine Mapleshade's voice was. But, he still held his ground.

"I won't allow an evil cat like you go back to the surface. To leave, you have to get pass me."

"And me."

Hollyleaf revealed herself, her fur still melding into the shadows.

Mapleshade chuckled.

"Alright, if you wish."

She unsheathed her claws.

"Come at me, forgotten spirits of the dark!"

* * *

Grievous threw a Dark Forest warrior into a tree, knocking them out cold.

He panted heavily.

He didn't know how much more he could take of this. He had been fighting for hour's strait, taking any chance he could get with a Dark Forest warrior.

His eyes glanced around the area, searching for the next opponent. In the corner of his eye, he saw some RiverClan and WindClan cats get surrounded by Dark Forest warriors near the lake. Grievous sprinted towards them and ambushed the nearest warrior. That gave the RiverClan and WindClan warriors time to recover as they had a chance to retreat or help fight. Grievous choked the Dark Forest warrior, waiting for them to lose conscious.

Suddenly, someone ran into Grievous, forcing him to fall back. He turned to see that the cat was Breezepelt, who was being controlled by a Dark Forest cat. Breezepelt's blue eyes gleamed as he charged at Grievous. Grievous dogged and tried to get a good hit at Breezepelt. But the ghost who possessed Breezepelt was swift, and was able to avoid Grievous's attacks. Breezepelt then scratched Grievous's chest, making him cry in pain. He flinched away, cringing a bit.

Breezepelt smirked.

He was about to attack Grievous again when suddenly, he screamed in agony as his eye color changed rapidly.

Grievous stayed where he was, trying to recover his strength.

After a few minutes of constant screams, a spirit came out of Breezepelt's body, his body covered with blood. Another spirit came out, rage burning in her eyes. She then tore out the Dark Forest warrior's throat out, killing him instantly. When he disappeared from existence, she turned to Grievous.

"Grievous, you bloody idiot!" Asajj exclaimed angrily.

She then slapped him with her tail. Just as quick, she put her muzzle onto his, as if kissing him.

Grievous blinked, heat rising to his face.

Asajj backed away.

"I swear to God, if you had died..."

Emotion chocked her words.

Grievous smiled slightly. "Good to see you too."

Behind Asajj, he saw that the other Dark Forest warrior was trying to get up.

"Looks like we have some more cats to fight."

Grievous ran past her, ready to face another opponent.

Asajj saw more cats coming towards them. She charged at them, wanting to end this as soon as possible.

* * *

Lionblaze ran through the forest, desperate to find Ivypaw and Dovepaw.

He kept getting ambushed by Dark Forest warriors, trying their best to slay him. But by slowing down a bit, Lionblaze was able to kill them quickly, not even caring if they where possessed or not.

Running and fighting, running and fighting, this process would repeat.

Suddenly, Lionblaze found himself surrounded by Dark Forest warriors. The leader, Brokenstar chuckled at the face of Lionblaze. He then ordered his warriors to stand back.

"Back off. This one is mine," Brokenstar said.

The Dark Forest warriors nodded and enclosed a battle arena for Brokenstar and Lionblaze. The two toms then circled each other, waiting for the other to make the first move. Lionblaze growled.

_I don't have time for this!_

Out of desperation, he charged at Brokenstar.

Brokenstar smirked.

He then jumped out of the way and got behind Lionblaze. Lionblaze turned and faced him as Brokenstar tried to sink his claws into his back. He instead put his claws in Lionblaze's shoulders, not doing as much damage. Lionblaze growled in pain but was able to slap Brokenstar across the face. Brokenstar hissed and charged at Lionblaze again. He tackled him and the two toms rolled around on the ground, desperate to get at each others' throats.

Suddenly, a third cat came crashing in.

He tackled Brokenstar, letting Lionblaze able to get free. Lionblaze turned to see who had helped him. His eyes widened as he couldn't believe who he was seeing.

Tigerstar approached Brokenstar, who was just as shocked to see him as Lionblaze was.

"Thought you could imprison me forever, did you, Brokenstar?" Tigerstar questioned coldly. "I'll teach you a lesson that you will never forget!"

Tigerstar glanced back at Lionblaze.

"Go now! I'll be able to handle them on my own! Right now, you need to get the last remaining Jedi and Separatists together! Only they have the strength to defeat Mapleshade!"

Brokenstar lashed out at Tigerstar. Tigerstar grunted but fought back.

"Go, now while you still can, Lionblaze!"

Tigerstar's words where muffled as all the Dark Forest cats focused their attention on him.

Lionblaze, though still confused, did as Tigerstar said and ran back towards camp.

Something told him that one of the Jedi was already there.

* * *

Hollyleaf cried in agony as she was pinned against the wall. Mapleshade pressed her paw onto Hollyleaf's heart, her claws ever carefully scratching her skin.

"A valiant effort, my friend," Mapleshade whispered. "But I'm afraid it wasn't enough. Now, to finish you off and then your clans."

"Don't be so sure about it!" Hollyleaf muttered under her breath. "There is still hope left."

"And where would that be?"

Hollyleaf grinned.

"You haven't figured it out, have you? Don't you see that you have already been defeated?"

Mapleshade narrowed her eyes.

"What do you mean, what are you talking about?"

Hollyleaf laughed slightly as looked into Mapleshade's amber, slightly brown eyes.

"It won't be long until you are gone," Hollyleaf said. "Soon you'll face the most powerful enemy that you have ever faced. Yourself."

"_Silence_!"

Mapleshade sunk her claws into Hollyleaf's chest as she bit her neck. Hollyleaf gasped, coughing slightly. Mapleshade let go of Hollyleaf and let her fall to the ground. She then bit the back of her spine, paralyzing and then killing her.

Mapleshade smiled, pleased with her work.

She then looked over near Anakin's body, where Fallen Leave's spirit was slowly fading away.

Mapleshade then left him for dead, now continuing her search through the tunnels.

As she walked, she felt like she was getting a slight headache. She felt drained, like something was happening to her body. But, she ignored it as there were more important things going on.

Finally, after wondering for a long time, Mapleshade could see moonlight shinning in. She walked out, her paws itching for a fight. She felt the breeze from the lake hit her fur.

The smell of blood and death, the screams of agony and pain, all music to her.

"Mapleshade!"

Mapleshade quickly glanced over to see Asajj and Grievous facing her.

Mapleshade smirked.

"Back again are we?" she said coolly. "I don't know how you made your way back here and with your memory in tacked, Asajj Ventress. But I must say, it is good to see you two again."

Asajj hissed. "I'll make you pay for murdering me and for using Dooku!"

Mapleshade laughed.

"So, you actually care for him after all he has done? That's a bit of a shock."

"That wasn't him, it was you influencing him!"

"Partly, yes, but he would have destroyed the clans anyway. That was his goal, after all."

"That may be so," Grievous said taking a step closer to Mapleshade. "But Dooku wouldn't have done something this ruthless. Enslave the clans; yes he would have tried that. I would have myself when I first came here. But, we have changed since then. For Asajj, the Jedi, and I, for the better. But all you did was brought Dooku to madness, killing him inside out."

He unsheathed his claws.

"And now it is time to finish this once and for all. Only one of us will leave this lake shore alive, Mapleshade. There is nowhere to hide."

Mapleshade chuckled. "Your good at making speeches, General Grievous, but can you live up to your words? Can you truly slay me?"

Mapleshade jumped off the huge rock she was standing on. She stood where she landed, prepared for battle.

Grievous smirked.

"I never say no to a challenge."

He turned to Asajj, looking at her strait in the eyes.

"Let me face her alone unless something goes wrong. Make sure no one interrupts us, understand?"

Asajj gave a small, reluctant nod and backed away.

Grievous turned back to Mapleshade. "It's your move, my friend."

Mapleshade flicked her tail.

"With pleasure, my dear."

She gave a wicked laugh and charged at Grievous. Grievous charged as well and their claws collided with each other. Grievous tried to sink his teeth into Mapleshade's neck while Mapleshade tried to make him lose his balance. They continued to savagely hit each other, waiting for the other to show some weakness. Bloody scratches and bruises where all over their bodies, both of them not willing to give up until the other was dead.

In the background, Asajj watched the battle, making sure they were not disturbed.

It killed her inside to see Grievous fighting like that but she knew that there was nothing she could do. Asajj wondered if there was any part of Dooku that was still alive. Was he fighting Mapleshade or was he letting her win?

Or was he took weak to fight at all?

Asajj cringed as she saw Mapleshade bite into Grievous's leg, slowing him down a bit.

"Asajj!"

Asajj quickly turned around to see Obi-Wan and Ahsoka coming towards her. Her eyes glowed with relief. At least Obi-Wan was alright.

"Asajj, what is going on?" Obi-Wan asked completely out of breath.

"Grievous and I have been fighting off some Dark Forest warriors here," she reported. "Just a few minutes ago, Mapleshade, Dooku, showed up and now she and Grievous are fighting."

"_Mapleshade_?"

He scanned the area.

"Have you seen Anakin by any chance?"

"Anakin?"

A dark looked came from Obi-Wan and Ahsoka's eyes. Asajj's eyes widened.

"Are you telling me..."

"I'm afraid so," Obi-Wan said avoiding eye contact. "He and Mapleshade fell into a large, bottomless hole not too long ago. If she was able to get out alive, then that must mean Anakin failed to finish her off. Either she killed him or he died during the fall."

A small tear ran down his face.

"We've have to..._kill_ Mapleshade, even if that means killing Dooku. We can't afford any more deaths."

He was about to leave and join the battle when Asajj put her tail in front of him.

"No. I have a plan."

Obi-Wan looked at her.

"And what is your plan?" he asked.

"We wait until Mapleshade is weak or Grievous is in big trouble and take Mapleshade by surprise. Besides..."

Asajj observed Mapleshade's movements carefully.

"I want to see if what I think is happening _is _happening."

"What do you mean..."

Ahsoka gasped.

"I think I see what you are meaning! Her fighting style..."

The fallen warriors watched Mapleshade's attack patterns, their eyes never blinking. Obi-Wan, confused as to what they where referring to, watched the battle, longing to help fight.

Grievous and Mapleshade hit, slashed, bit, and kicked at each other repeatedly. Mapleshade then leaned close to the ground and used all of her strength to jump up at Grievous. She hit him strait in the stomach, causing him to fall to the ground. Grievous cried in pain as he landed on his back. Mapleshade got on top of him, her paw on his neck.

She laughed manically.

"And now it is your time to die! The final Separatists cat will fall at my paws!"

She readied her claws.

At that moment, Asajj, Ahsoka, and Obi-Wan ran towards Mapleshade and Grievous. Mapleshade saw them out of the corner of her eye and smiled as they approached.

"I'm glad to see that all of you have come," she said malevolently. "All of the Jedi and Separatists are here to witness their demise. But one of you is missing isn't there?"

Obi-Wan and Ahsoka tensed up in anger.

Mapleshade chuckled.

"What a pity. Anakin did put up a good fight, but I'm afraid it wasn't enough. _No_ one can stop me, not even all of you combine! I am _invisible_!"

"And so are we."

Mapleshade's eyes widened at the sound of that voice. Everyone else turned around to see a spirit forming right in front of their eyes. He glared down at Mapleshade, his eyes burning with hatred.

"Long time no see, Mapleshade," Anakin said coldly. "As you can see, I'm not that easy to get rid of."

"But _how_?" Mapleshade questioned unable to hide the shock in her voice. "How did you come back? There is now way you could have learned how to come to the land of the living that quick!"

"Luckily, I had StarClan on my side to guide me," Anakin replied. "And now, we are going to finish you off!"

He took a stand next to Obi-Wan, Ahoska, and Asajj, hoping to intimidate Mapleshade.

But unfortunately, that did not work.

Mapleshade tightened her grip on Grievous.

"It does not matter! I will still prevail! Soon, only one of you will remain alive and the rest of you will slowly lose your memory of the world of the clans! And then I will have full domination over the clans beside the lake! There is nothing you can do! There will only be _blood and death for moons to come_!"

Mapleshade laughed at the top of her lungs. She then readied for the killing blow.

But before she could move, Grievous took this opportunity and kicked Mapleshade in the stomach. She flinched back and Grievous rose to his feet.

"Thanks for the distraction, Jedi," Grievous said to Anakin. "Perhaps you Jedi do have a use."

Anakin flicked his tail.

"As do you, Grievous."

Mapleshade hissed frustrated.

"Enough! I _will_ have my victory! I will have the vengeance I so rightfully deserve! I-"

She cut herself off.

Mapleshade suddenly let out a terrified scream. She fell to the ground, crying and gasping. Her eyes where melding into a dark brown and amber color. Asajj and Ahsoka gasped.

"What's going on?" Obi-Wan asked. "Why is she screaming like that?"

"It is because her soul is merging with Dooku's," Asajj answered. "They are becoming one soul."

"'One soul?'" Grievous asked puzzled and alarmed.

"Before we came to the world of living, Tigerstar told us that there where consequences that can happen when taking over a living cat's body," Ahsoka explained. "One of them is when the living cat and the possessor's souls combine together permanently. Everything about them merges into one. Memories, personality, identity. Dooku and Mapleshade are becoming each other."

"Is there no way to stop it?" Anakin asked.

Both Asajj and Ahoska shook their heads.

"No, it is too late. There is nothing we can do to stop it."

"_Arghaaa_!"

Everyone turned to Mapleshade, who was staring at them, her eyes in pain and confusion.

"Stop her!" the weak voice of Dooku said. "Kill her, _me_, before we've fully become one! I can only hold her, us, back for so long! Kill me and she will be destroyed forever!"

Dooku twitched and screamed.

"Please, I beg of you! I'm suffering! Make it stop, make it stop!"

Every second his voice sounded more and more like Mapleshade's.

Everyone looked at each other, not sure what to do. Dooku and Mapleshade shrieked with each minute that passed. Finally, Grievous stepped forward towards Mapleshade and Dooku.

He looked into his master's eyes.

"I thought you would rather die from my paws then from the Jedi's. It seemed less humiliating."

Dooku nodded slowly and closed his eyes, waiting for death to come. Grievous made his face emotionless as he could as he twisted Dooku's neck. There was a final loud snap and Dooku became motionless. The blood from his wounded body and mouth flowed into the lake, staining Grievous's silver fur with his blood.

Grievous sighed heavily.

It was finally over. The battle was won.


	27. The Sun Rises

The sun slowly rose over the horizon, its rays of light hitting gently over ThunderClan territory. A gentle breeze blew through the morning, as if calming the remains of battle.

The cats that where possessed by the Dark Forest fell unconscious as the evil spirits retreated from their bodies. Knowing that their leader was defeated, they retreated back to the Dark Forest. Tigerstar made sure of that as he watched the Dark Forest warriors leave the world of the living.

He hadn't made his presence known to the other living cats other then Lionblaze, but he had watched over them as they slowly started to recover. To his surprise, there weren't too many deaths, only a few serious, not fatal, injuries. Though, a lot of cats looked like they have been damaged more mentally then physically, mainly cats who where possessed.

But, Tigerstar didn't really cared about that.

However, a part of him was happy that the clans weren't completely destroyed. As much as he loathed them, it didn't seem right to kill them all off.

Tigerstar scanned though the crowd of Dark Forest warriors, looking for a specific cat. His eyes widened when he found the cat he was looking for he quickly, though calmly, rushed towards him.

"Hawkfrost."

Hawkfrost's ears twitched at the mention of his name. He turned to his father, though he avoided eye contact.

"Hello, father."

"I see that you came out of this alive," Tigerstar said emotionless. "And you didn't suffer any side effects of possessing a living cat." "

No, Tigerstar."

Hawkfrost turned away from his father.

"I'm surprised that you weren't the one leading us, though," he suddenly said. "I would have thought you would have done this a long time ago."

"If I was a foolish mouse-brain, yes," Tigerstar answered coldly. "But I knew the risks where Mapleshade didn't. And now, she had paid the price."

He put his tail on Hawkfrost's shoulder, forcing his son to look at him in the eyes.

"I am furious that you betrayed me and went with Mapleshade...but I'm glad you are alright. After all, you are still my kin."

Hawkfrost stared at his father as he could not believe what he just heard.

"Come, let us leave this world. We do not belong here."

Once the final Dark Forest cats where gone, the two toms left the world of the living, vowing to not have a war like this again.

* * *

Flametail's eyes gleamed under the morning sun's light as he walked into Blackstar's den. He was carrying some herbs in his mouth to check on Blackstar's wounds again.

He sighed heavily.

Even though the battle was over, there were still so many injured cats in camp, even cats that weren't ShadowClan. He was amazed that there weren't a lot of deaths, as he thought there would be.

Perhaps, that was a miracle from StarClan.

Flametail looked down at Blackstar. The ShadowClan leader hadn't moved since Rowanclaw first brought him. It made him worry that he may be losing more than one life. Though his injuries didn't look that sever, he may have gotten internal damage that Flametail could do nothing about.

Suddenly, Blackstar started to open his eyes.

Flametail gasped.

Blackstar blinked a few times.

"W-where..."

"You're in your den, Blackstar," Flametail explained. "The battle is over. We've won."

Blackstar smiled slightly. "I see...good. How is everyone?"

"Most of our clanmates are in camp, but some our probably in ThunderClan camp. You see..."

Flametail then explained the battle with the Dark Forest warriors he had heard from his clanmates. Blackstar's eyes widened as he couldn't believe what he was hearing. When Flametail was finished, the ShadowClan leader closed his eyes.

"So ShadowClan is safe?"

"Yes, all of the clans are."

Blackstar relaxed a bit. "That's good, I am happy about that."

His breathing began to slow down.

"If you see Grievous or Asajj, tell them I thank them if they haven't left. They have protected ShadowClan as if they lived in it their whole lives. It brings me peace knowing that the clan I love so much is under great protection."

"Blackstar, what are you saying? Are you telling me..."

"Goodbye, Flametail," Blackstar said weakly. "And take care of ShadowClan. You will be a great medicine cat."

Blackstar then became still, his spirit finding his way to StarClan.

Flametail stared at his dead leader's body.

At least he died peacefully, knowing his clan would safe.

* * *

Jayfeather slowly opened his eyes as the sun's warm rays hit his pelt.

He felt exhausted and tired, his body still in great pain. Jayfeather sat up a little, trying to figure out where he was. He saw a bunch of unconscious WindClan, ThunderClan, and some even RiverClan and ShadowClan warriors all around the medicine cats' den, either being treated or waiting to be treated for their wounds. There were a lot of unconscious cats laying around and Jayfeather guessed that they were probably cats possessed by the Dark Forest.

Jayfeather looked up at the sky as the stars started to fade by morning's light.

_It's finally over_, Jayfeather thought relieved. _The battle is over and we survived. We can all rest in peace._

Jayfeather closed his eyes.

Another vision from StarClan came into his head. He saw Obi-Wan, Anakin, Ahsoka, Asajj, Grievous, and even Dooku, standing before him. Jayfeather smiled slightly as the vision played in his mind.

"Jayfeather, your awake!"

Jayfeather reopened his eyes as he heard Lionblaze approach him.

"We did it, Jayfeather!" Lionblaze rejoiced. "We defeated the Dark Forest!"

"So it would seem."

Lionblaze gave Jayfeather a puzzled look. "What's wrong?"

Jayfeather stayed silent for a moment.

"I can sense the lost souls that have died in this battle," he whispered loud enough for only Lionblaze to hear. "Most of them no one knows about. It is just...sad."

He took in a deep breath.

"May they rest in peace, and know that we honor each and every one of them, whoever they are."

Lionblaze nodded in agreement. He then looked towards the distance.

"I wonder how the Jedi are Separatists are doing," he said thinking out loud. "I wonder if they survived."

"Oh, they did," Jayfeather replied. "But, they won't have long to celebrate."

Lionblaze gave him a puzzled look.

"What do you mean by that?"

Jayfeather smiled.

"You will find out soon enough, my brother. But just know that everything is going to return the way it was suppose to be."

Without another word, Jayfeather stood up and limped towards Brightheart, Leafpool, and Briarlight, who were healing the injured cats. Lionblaze, still confused, turned his gaze to Ivypaw, who was in deep, peaceful sleep. Dovepaw was right next to her, watching her sister carefully. Lionblaze smiled.

His clan was safe, and it was all thanks to the Jedi.

* * *

The Jedi and Separatists stared at Dooku's body as the sun rose into the sky. They all stood in silence, as if paying respect to the fallen warrior. Even though Dooku did some horrible things, he didn't deserve the fate he got. What Mapleshade did to him...it was horrible way to go.

Not wanting to look at Dooku's corpse anymore, everyone turned to each other. They all looked into each others' eyes, not quite sure what to say or do.

They've all have been enemies for so long, fighting nonstop and wanting nothing more than to see the other side brought to justice. But yet, here they were. Fighting side by side to save the clans they have gotten so attached to. It was as if their previous lives didn't exist, like they were never enemies in the first place.

"...Well, we've done it," Obi-Wan finally said breaking the silence. "We've have saved the clans."

"It appears so," Grievous replied. "We've killed the leader of the Dark Forest."

"So the clans should be safe now," Asajj muttered. "They can finally be at peace."

Ahsoka nodded in reply.

There was an awkward silence.

"But...what happens to us?" Anakin suddenly asked. "What do we do now that the clans are safe?"

"I guess we should try to find a way back to Kamino," Obi-Wan answered. "That's the most logical thing to do."

Everyone nodded in agreement, though some thoughts of doubt still lingered. How would they get back? Some of them, didn't even want to leave.

"Well done, cats of the Jedi and Separatists."

Everyone's fur stood up as they turned to see Rock appearing right in front of them. The old cat looked at each one of them in the eye, relief and gratitude in his blind eyes.

"I admit, I did doubt that you would work together in the end," Rock said truthfully. "But you came through in the end, and I'm glad you did. You have saved the clans from destruction, and I thank you for that."

"We are glad that we have helped," Obi-Wan said.

Rock nodded in reply.

"Though, are the Dark Forest cats gone for good?" Ahsoka asked worried. "Will they try to invade again?"

Rock sighed heavily.

"The Dark Forest will always be a threat to the clans, that will never change. But will they try to do something like this? No. At least, not after what happened to Mapleshade."

Rock glanced over at Dooku and then back to the others.

"So, is Mapleshade really gone for good?" Anakin questioned.

"Yes, her spirit has been destroyed forever."

"What about Dooku?"

"Since he is not from this world, Dooku will return to your world safe and sound. He won't remember anything that has happened to him here, so he should be back to normal."

Grievous flicked his tail. He wondered if he should consider Dooku having his memory erased of the clans a good thing because that means he would be sane again. Or bad because he will be the same douche bag like he always was.

"And now your time here has come to a close, Jedi and Separatists," Rock said solemnly. "It is time for you to return to Kamino. Though, unfortunately, you won't be able to keep your memories of this place."

"Wait, _what_?"

Asajj stepped up to Rock, anger rising in her eyes.

"Why can't we remember what happened? All of our experiences, our change of character, our new found respect for each other was all a waste?"

Rock's eyes darkened a bit.

"You can't have memories of both worlds. Horrible things can happen with a mortal being having the knowledge of two universes."

"Like what? What could be _so_ devastating that we can't remember the clans?"

Rock stayed quiet for a long moment.

"Even though I was desperate to save the clans, I did break the law of the universe by bringing you here. Only spirits of the afterlife may know about the different dimensions and universes. If you go back with the knowledge that you possess, then the space and time of both dimensions could mold in with each other, like what happened to Mapleshade and Dooku. In fact, it has already had begun."

Rock paused for a moment, letting the information he just gave them sink in.

"However, there is one thing I can do. I can let you keep one faded memory of this world. You would believe it was a strange dream, a fragment of a fever dream. A thing like that wouldn't disrupt anything big, but would only have a small link connecting the two worlds. That is the best I can offer you."

There was a long silence. Neither did the Separatists or the Jedi spoke.

Until Grievous said in a low voice, "If that is all I can accept, then fine. I don't want to lose my memories of this place."

"I agree with Grievous," Obi-Wan added. "I'm okay with just one memory."

Slowly, the others agreed. Rock smiled slightly.

"I can see that this is hard for you, and I do sympathize with you a bit. Now, let me tell you how to get back."

"Wait, we don't even get to say goodbye?" Ahsoka exclaimed. "Can't we see how the clans are doing before we go?"

"No, because that would only delay the time to get you back. The longer you stay, the harder it is to depart."

Ahsoka looked down at the ground but said nothing else. Clearly, she didn't like this.

"Now, to head back to Kamino, walk into the water of the lake," Rock advised. "Once your body is fully underwater, your spirit will go back to your original body back on Kamino. It will be as if you never left."

"But wait, don't we need to tell you-"

"I already know which memory you want to keep," Rock said cutting Asajj off. "You just have to trust me."

The Jedi and the Separatists then let out a heavy sigh.

They all looked back at ThunderClan territory one last time and each one of them slowly went into the water.

Anakin led the way, his thoughts longing to get back to his world and see his wife Padme. Before he was fully underwater, he turned to Rock and gave him a respectful nod. Rock nodded back as Anakin disappeared completely.

Ahsoka was right behind him, though she wanted to see her friends in ThunderClan one last time, she was ready to get back home.

"Make sure the clans stay safe," Ahsoka said to Rock. "Don't let anything bad happened to them if you can help it."

"I won't," Rock replied.

Ahsoka smiled and she faded into the water.

Once she was gone, Obi-Wan turned to Rock as he walked further and further into the lake.

"Glad we were able to help the clans," he said sincerely. "It was a great experience, even if I will forget most of it."

He then disappeared.

Asajj flicked her tail angrily, as she did not want to forget. She gave one tearful last quick glance at ThunderClan territory and then at Grievous before forcing herself to go underwater.

Grievous walked slowly, his thoughts dreading the fact that he was going to become a cyborg again. He closed his eyes and sighed heavily.

_No matter what happens, I will never forget what it was like to be alive again._

Taking a deep breath of air one last time, he fell into the lake, letting the water consume him.

Rock stood in silence as the Jedi and Separatists left the world of the clans forever. He then faded away into the wind, using his spiritual powers to fade away the memories of the Jedi and Separatists from the minds of the cats of the clans. Not completely, but enough for it to be at the very back of their minds, in case they meet the Jedi and Separatists again.

Hopefully, they will never have to remember.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Well, The Clans is now officially finished. As I've foreshadow, there will be a sequel to The Clans. Though I won't be the one writing it. IVSS will be writing the sequel. I'll be posting a link to IVSS's story once it is posted.**

**Also, I like to thank all of you for reading and reviewing my longest, and I think me best, fanfic yet. I hope you enjoy the sequel as much as this story!**


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